Whale reported in distress eludes team
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Mammal Response Team searched Thursday but could not find an entangled whale calf reported at 6 p.m. Wednesday off Haleiwa.
The crew of the Hoonanea, a sunset cruise vessel, reported seeing the whale entangled in what appeared to be gear from a crab trap about a mile or two off the coast, said David Schofield, manager of the Regional Marine Mammal Health and Response Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Crew members also reported seeing tiger sharks following it, and the mother was nowhere in sight for the 20 minutes the calf followed the boat. The entanglement was through the mouth, which could be life-threatening, Schofield said.
He said the Marine Mammal Response Team led the response, immediately planning the search Wednesday evening, but could not begin the search at night. The team began searching Thursday morning.
The Coast Guard Auxiliary did a flyover and saw 10 different groups of whales Thursday but spotted none that was entangled.
"It’s like a needle in a haystack," Schofield said.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Boy, 15, saved from steam vent
A 15-year-old boy from San Rafael, Calif., is "lucky to be alive" after falling 20 to 25 feet into a steam vent at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Wednesday night, the National Park Service said.
The boy apparently jumped over a railing at the steam vent near the Volcano House and visitors center, the park service said Thursday. His mother called 911 at 6:43 p.m.
Park search and rescue coordinator John Broward rappelled into the chimneylike crack in the earth and rescued the boy.
The boy suffered a bump on the head and minor abrasions and declined further medical treatment.
"This young visitor and his family are extraordinarily lucky that he survived this mishap," Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando said in a news release. "This incident serves as a reminder that park visitors are urged to stay on trails and not engage in reckless behavior while visiting their national parks."
Dead swimmer is identified
The man who died Tuesday while swimming with his wife off Maui’s Kamaole Beach Park was from Washington state.
The Maui News reported that police have identified the victim as Glen Burlingame, 49, of Vancouver.
Police say the couple was snorkeling 10 to 15 yards offshore at about 10:45 a.m. when the wife turned and saw her husband floating face-down in the water. Lt. Jayson Rego of the Criminal Investigation Division said Burlingame’s wife swam back to shore with him, where people on the beach attempted to revive him.
Maui County lifeguards and firefighters arrived and continued CPR efforts, but Burlingame died at the scene.
