Hawaii

Published on: July 22, 2025

Injured Maritime Worker Medevaced to Honolulu

A 41-year-old crew member suffering from a fractured arm and possible head injury was successfully medevaced from a cargo ship located approximately 1,000 miles northeast of Oahu on July 19^th, 2025. The bold rescue, coordinated by the Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) Honolulu, brought the injured mariner to safety after a multi-day transit.

The incident began around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, July 17^th when JRCC Honolulu watchstanders received a call from Eastaway Ship Management. It was reported that a crew member aboard their 892-foot, Singapore-flagged cargo ship, the EA CHARA, had sustained a significant injury far out in the Pacific.

Following a consultation with a duty flight surgeon, who strongly recommended a medical evacuation, JRCC Honolulu established communication with the EA CHARA. This allowed them to monitor the patient’s condition as the cargo ship altered course and headed towards Oahu.

Published on: January 21, 2025

Coast Guard Rescues Injured Crewman from Fishing Vessel Off Oahu

by Joseph Stacey

The U.S. Coast Guard successfully medevaced a 34-year-old crewman from a fishing vessel approximately 40 miles offshore from Oahu on Monday February 20, 2025, following a serious eye injury sustained at sea.

The Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu received the initial distress call at 4:30 p.m. Saturday February 18^th, 2025, from the F/V CAPT DAVIS, which was then located about 350 miles southwest of Oahu. U.S. Coast Guard watchstanders consulted with a duty flight surgeon, who determined that the injured crewman required urgent medical evacuation.

Early Monday morning, at 6 a.m., rescue teams from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, including an HC-130 Hercules airplane and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter, rendezvoused with the fishing vessel roughly 40 miles southwest of Kapolei, Hawaii. The helicopter crew successfully hoisted the injured man aboard and transported him to Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu for treatment.

Published on: September 10, 2024

Coast Guard Issues Alert after Fishing Boat Explosion in Hawaii

by Joseph Stacey

The U.S. Coast Guard issued a safety alert following a deadly explosion aboard the F/V KIM THU, an uninspected commercial fishing vessel, in Hawaii on April 26, 2024. In a recent update, U.S. Coast Guard officials provided further details about the blast, while the Department of Law Enforcement confirmed that the F/V KIM THU was a foreign long-line fishing vessel. Investigations into the cause of the explosion are ongoing.

The incident occurred while the boat was moored at Pier 36 for maintenance. The explosion, which originated from the marine diesel fuel tank, resulted in the death of one crew member and left five others injured.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the F/V KIM THU failed to comply with the “Hot Works” permit guidelines issued by the State Department of Transportation. These regulations govern maintenance activities on water tank hatches, engine room stairs, and spotlights. According to witnesses, welding was conducted on a fuel tank vent pipe that had not been certified as gas-free or deemed “Safe for Hot Work” by a certified marine chemist, a clear violation of permit requirements.

Published on: May 4, 2021

Long-Range Medevac for Injured Mariner

by Joseph Stacey

In a heroic effort by the U.S. Coast Guard, a mariner was medevaced from the F/V VICIOUS CYCLE after sustaining a forearm injury. The vessel was located approximately 130-miles southwest of Kailua Kona, Hawaii at the time of the incident.

Sector Honolulu watchstanders received the call from a Good Samaritan at approximately 11:14AM on April 27^th, 2021, reporting that the master of the F/V VICIOUS CYCLE had sustained an injury.

Attempts were made to contact the vessel via radio, but the fishing boat was out of radio range. An Air Station Barbers Point HC-130 Hercules aircrew was launched and was able to make contact with the vessel. The Coast Guard duty flight surgeon was contacted, and based on the situation, recommended that the mariner be medevaced.

Published on: September 24, 2019

7 Rescued in Fishing Vessel Fire

by Joseph Stacey

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued six fishermen and one NOAA fisheries observer on Tuesday, September 17th after the F/V MISS EMMA caught fire approximately 8 miles south of Ko’Olina, Hawaii.

A VHF mayday call was received at about 4:29 p.m. from the vessel crew, who were aggressively fighting the fire. Sector Honolulu sent out an alert to other vessels in the area and directed the launch of a response boat, the cutter JOSEPH GERCZAK, an HC-130 Hercules SAR airplane, and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter.

The seven people aboard the F/V Miss Emma were forced to abandon ship via a liferaft. The U.S. Coast Guard was able to rescue everyone within half an hour of receiving the mayday call. The crewmembers and the NOAA fisheries observer were taken to Pier 38 in Honolulu where they were met by first responders, medical personnel, and officials from Customs and Border Protection. No injuries were reported.

Published on: July 17, 2018

Lava Bombs Hit Tour Boat, 23 Injured

by Joseph Stacey

The U.S. Coast Guard and the Hawaii County Police Department continue to investigate an incident in which “lava bombs” showered down on a Kapoho Bay sightseeing vessel, injuring 23 tourists. Officials reported that the lava tour boat was cruising near the erupting Kilauea volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island when lava bombs began crashing down on the vessel. It has been reported that about 50 lava bombs hit the boat and that one, about the size of a basketball, pierced the metal roof of the vessel, injuring 23 passengers.

Sector Honolulu watchstanders received the initial call from 911 at about 6 a.m. that three crewmembers, as well as three tourists, had been injured in an incident in Kapoho Bay aboard the lava sightseeing vessel Hot Shot. The sightseeing vessel returned to Hilo harbor where emergency medical personnel were waiting to receive the injured. Ten passengers were treated at the scene for cuts and burns, while 13 others were referred to Hilo Medical Center for treatment. Four were sent by ambulance, and one woman in her 20s has been listed in serious condition with burns and a fractured femur.

“Today’s unfortunate event is a good reminder about the risks involved with observing a natural wonder like this one and the reason officials are continuously monitoring the eruption to ensure the public is kept at safe distances on land, in the air and while at sea,” Ross Birch, executive director of the Island of Hawaii Visitors Bureau, said in a statement.