Honolulu firefighters this morning rescued a 75-year-old man who spent the night on Maunawili Trail on Oahu after suffering an injury while hiking Sunday.

The Honolulu Fire Department received a 911 call at 6:01 a.m. for the injured hiker. Five units and about 15 personnel responded, with the first arriving on the scene 13 minutes later.

The hiker reportedly started hiking the previous night when he suffered an injury and decided to camp out in the mountains, then attempt to hike out at daybreak.

HFD’s Air 2 helicopter located the injured hiker this morning and airlifted him to the nearby landing zone at Maunawili Neighborhood Park. HFD transferred the medical care of the patient to Emergency Medical Services at 7:25 a.m.

HFD reminds the public to hike safely by bringing a fully-charged cell phone with an external, backup battery in case of an emergency and by researching a trail before starting.

Staying put on a trail is also advised, HFD said, especially after dark, in order for rescue personnel to find you more quickly and reduce the chances of getting into further trouble. It is also important to notify someone of your hike location and destination, and when you expect to be back.

State officials in July 2021 closed off access to a portion of the Maunawili Falls trail that goes over private land, including the trailhead at the Maunawili Estate subdivision, but the falls are still accessible through a connector trail in the state’s forest reserve system.