New Kahe Point Beach Park lifeguard tower is saving lives, data shows

Honolulu Ocean Safety’s newest lifeguard tower at Kahe Point Beach Park, which marks approximately one month on Labor Day, is expected to make a lifesaving impact on the popular holiday and beyond.

The Honolulu Ocean Safety department said since the tower’s Aug. 3 installation, lifeguards have performed seven rescues. Each day, they also have averaged more than 160 preventive actions or interventions that prevent beachgoers from doing something that could cause injury or death.

Acting Lt. Pono Akiona­-Ferriman, a second-­generation city lifeguard and lifelong Leeward Coast resident, said in a statement, “One more tower may not seem like a big deal, just like an extra couple of hours on the beach may not seem like a big deal. But the new tower at Kahe Point, and the longer hours, have already saved lives.”

“The biggest shift we’ve seen, is that people have more awareness of the hazards and risks at spots like Kahe Point,” Akiona-­Ferriman said. “We’ve noticed more and more people approaching us and asking how to keep themselves safe in the water.”

For example, an Ocean Safety official said the department was recently contacted by a Kahe Point snorkeler who said he was grateful that an Ocean Safety lifeguard had saved him after he was pulled out by a strong current. The official said the man said that he had panicked and struggled to return to shore.

The official stated that the Kahe Point lifeguards also are improving the overall safety of the beach. For example, they have called the Honolulu Police Department to report car break-ins, fights and other disturbances. Twice they have called for the Honolulu Emergency Medical Services to co­-respond to a patient, including a child who was having a seizure.

The opening of the newest tower at Kahe Point Beach Park brings Ocean Safety’s count of official towers to 42 and its mobile units to 16.

Most of Ocean Safety’s towers operate from 8 a.m to 6:30 p.m, in support of an extended-hours law passed in 2019. On Sunday, Ocean Safety said all Oahu towers will be on the extended schedule, when seven towers on the North Shore make the change.

Ocean Safety’s team comprises 287 personnel, who make nearly 3,000 rescues a year.