Firefighters returned Monday to the trail in Waianae where a 15-year-old boy was believed to have been hiking before he went missing Saturday.
Capt. Dave Jenkins, a Honolulu Fire Department spokesman, said a command post and a landing zone for the department’s helicopter were established Monday morning at Kaneaki Park in Makaha.
Jenkins said firefighters were searching on the trail that Richard Vierra Jr. reportedly took Saturday.
Police said Vierra went hiking alone in the trails near his home on Ala Akau Street at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday. He called his mother at about 11:30 a.m. to say he was returning home, but never arrived.
On Sunday family, police and friends joined 20 firefighters searching the area for the youth.
Firefighters suspended their search for the day at about 6 p.m. Sunday after no sign of the boy was found, Jenkins said.
He said Vierra’s mother called for help at about 1 p.m. Saturday, and firefighters began looking for the teen by working their way down from the top of the trail. A fire helicopter also assisted by dropping off firefighters along the trail and scanning from above.
Jenkins said firefighters called off the mountain search at about 4:30 p.m. Saturday after authorities received information that a cellphone tower received a ping from the boy’s phone near Pokai Bay. Police searched in that area but he was not found, Jenkins said.
Sunday morning, authorities followed up with cellphone company officials, who said it was possible the boy was still in the mountains and the tower received a ping because he was in a position where his cellphone’s signal reached the tower.
Vierra is described as Caucasian, 5 feet 5 inches tall and 120 pounds, with short reddish hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a dark blue shirt with white print, shorts and a light-blue backpack.
Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-3800.
