HONOLULU, Hawaii (TMX) – The U.S. Coast Guard said it is working with multiple agencies to search for a snorkeler who went missing off the coast of Hawaii on Sunday.
Kauai Fire Department dispatchers alerted watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Honolulu at around 12:15 p.m. Sunday that a 59-year-old male snorkeler had become separated from his group at about 11:45 a.m. off Anini Beach in Kalihiwai.
The Coast Guard issued an urgent marine information broadcast and launched a 45-foot response boat from Coast Guard Station Kauai along with an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point.
The Honolulu Ocean Safety Department, Kauai Ocean Safety Department and Kauai Fire Department are assisting in the search.
The snorkeler was last seen wearing pinkish-red board shorts, a black snorkel with an orange tip, and black water shoes with no shirt.
The Coast Guard is asking anyone with information that may help search efforts to contact the Coast Guard on VHF-FM channel 16 or call the Sector Honolulu command center at 808-842-2600.