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A 45-year-old scuba diver, missing at sea for more than 10 hours, used his flashlight in the early morning darkness to signal a Coast Guard helicopter and was rescued about two miles west of Kaena Point on Monday.
A Coast Guard spokesman said the Ewa man, wearing a black dive suit, began diving with a group of friends about a mile off Kaena Point at about 12:30 p.m. Sunday. His dive companions reported him missing at about 3:30 p.m. after he failed to surface as scheduled.
The Coast Guard and Honolulu Fire Department began to search for the man in an area extending nine miles from the diver’s last known location, the Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard used a computer program, the Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System, to plot a search area with the highest probability for finding the diver. The program takes into account factors such as wind speed and direction, and the size of the search object.
A Coast Guard rescue swimmer aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter sighted the diver, without the use of night-vision goggles, as the helicopter was departing the area to refuel.
The rescue swimmer went into the water and remained with the diver until the Coast Guard Cutter Ahi arrived to pick them up at 1:05 a.m. Monday.
The cutter took the man to Barbers Point Harbor, where he was met by emergency medical staff and family. He was reported to be in good health.
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