Empty tour van rolls off cliff on Hawaii island
COURTESY HAWAII NEWS NOW
Oooops. Kapohokine Adventures was conducting a private tour when passengers and the driver stepped out for a moment to take in the breathtaking view of the coastline at Onomea Tuesday morning. That’s when they saw the unoccupied van roll downhill and off a 200-foot cliff into the ocean. Kapohokine Adventures spokeswoman Lori Michimoto said the van’s shifter was in park, with emergency brake on and engine running, because the visit was a short tour stop. “We’re just happy there were no injuries,” she said. Michimoto said the company is bringing in a crane to try to retrieve the van. The passengers continued their tour in another van.
Oooops. Kapohokine Adventures was conducting a private tour when passengers and the driver stepped out for a moment to take in the breathtaking view of the coastline at Onomea Tuesday morning. That’s when they saw the unoccupied van roll downhill and off a 200-foot cliff into the ocean. Kapohokine Adventures spokeswoman Lori Michimoto said the van’s shifter was in park, with emergency brake on and engine running, because the visit was a short tour stop. “We’re just happy there were no injuries,” she said. Michimoto said the company is bringing in a crane to try to retrieve the van. The passengers continued their tour in another van.
HILO >> An adventure company owner is relieved that no tourists were in the van that rolled off a cliff and fell 130 feet into Onomea Bay on the Big Island.
The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports the Tuesday morning accident injured no one as the van rolled down an embankment and eventually fell into the surf below.
A KapohoKine Adventures news release says the van was still running, but parked with the emergency brake engaged. Company co-owner Tony DeLellis says the company is investigating the incident, which he called isolated.
The five passengers and their guide continued the tour Tuesday in a replacement van.
