A 30-year-old visitor fell 250 feet to his death Wednesday while hiking near the third peak of Mount Olomana, just three days after a 32-year-old male visitor fell from the same trail, suffering a serious head injury.

The Honolulu Fire Department responded to a call at 10:57 a.m. about a hiker who had fallen off the makai side of the trail. Six HFD units with 16 personnel were dispatched, the first arriving at 11:09 a.m., securing a landing zone at the Maunawili Valley Neighborhood Park as the Air 1 helicopter transported a rescue team to the site.

The hiker was airlifted to the landing zone, where Emergency Medical Services paramedics pronounced him dead.

The man had been hiking with three companions, including a local resident, an HFD spokesperson said.

HFD has responded to five emergencies so far this year at the Olomana Trail, and 13 incidents in 2021, the spokesperson said. At least five others have died from falls there between 2011 and 2019.

Experienced hikers from the Sierra Club and Hawaiian Trail &Mountain Club say Olomana can be incredibly treacherous in sections, particularly between the second and third peaks, where the very narrow ridge trail is usually traversed using a series of ropes strung between the peaks.

But should someone fall on either side of the trail, a rope won’t help much because they would be swinging along a cliff, which could lead to a fall of hundreds of feet.

Also, it’s difficult to tell how reliable any rope is, how long it has been there and who tied it.

The longtime Hawaii hikers say visitors from California and other places who are used to granite trails are often lured to the site by social media posts and may be unaware of the hazards of the crumbly, basaltic trail.

The Olomana Trail is in the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ inventory but does not appear on any DLNR websites, nor does it have directional or hazard signs on the trail itself.

“We don’t actively manage the trail, nor do we recommend that people traverse it,” said DLNR spokesperson Dan Dennison.

In other fatal incidents at Mount Olomana:

>> Hiker Nicholas Tachino’s body was found Oct. 6, 2019, below the second peak after the 51-year-old went missing Sept. 23.

>> Nathan Stowell, 24, was killed April 1, 2018, when he reached for his wind-tossed hat and plunged 400 feet off the third peak.

>> Glenn Vopper, 53, of Florida died June 27, 2015, after falling 200 feet between the first and second peaks.

>> Mitchell Kai, 27, died Jan. 10, 2014, from a 50-foot fall within 100 feet of the third peak.

>> Ryan Suenaga, 44, died April 23, 2011, when he fell 150 feet between the second and third peaks.