KAILUA-KONA — Things just got a lot louder at Kahaluu Beach Park, not to mention safer, thanks to a recently gifted long-distance communication system. ADVERTISING KAILUA-KONA — Things just got a lot louder at Kahaluu Beach Park, not to mention
KAILUA-KONA — Things just got a lot louder at Kahaluu Beach Park, not to mention safer, thanks to a recently gifted long-distance communication system.
The system lets lifeguard messages reach surfers 300 yards away from the north tower.
Donated by the Daniel R. Memorial Sayre Foundation, a nonprofit that seeks to provide equipment and training to the Hawaii Fire Department that the county cannot, the equipment was unveiled Monday and should help out get messages out in a crowded area.
“We want to keep everyone safe as we go home to our families,” said Joy Mills-Ferren, water safety officer at the beach, who earned the Meritorious Service Award in 2013 and has already used the equipment that she expects will get heavy use.
The noise of the sea and the distance out the surfers go makes it difficult to get people’s attention. If they have a reason to pull everyone in, such as a shark sighting or especially bad weather, they can now tell everyone at once, she said.
The beach was a priority for the new system as it’s very busy and attracts a lot of people who may not be familiar with the ocean, according to the foundation founders.
“(The old megaphones) were unable to get people’s attention really well,” Frank Sayre said about why the newest donation was so important.
Danny Sayre, son of Frank Sayre and Laura Mallery-Sayre, died in 1997 near Kapaloa Falls. A lack of rescue equipment resulted in a dangerous recovery of his body and led his parents to start the foundation. The group is holding its annual fundraiser and awards dinner at 4:30 p.m. Sept. 3 at the Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii.
The original speaker plan was to place the equipment at the south tower, said Gerald Kosaki, Hawaii Fire Department battalion chief for special operations. But they are planning to replace that tower and the north one more fully covers the surfing area north of the menehune wall, so they switched the location.
That’s the region where most people get into trouble. A similar system has made a huge difference at Hapuna Beach. A Sayre Foundation-provided ATV at the beach has also allowed for far more rapid response, he added.
Bikeworks Kona has contributed part of the money raised from their Cinco de Mayo Splash for the last five years. This year’s donation provided much of the money for the $5,500 system.
“You can say it all started with surfboards,” said Janet Higa-Miller, who owns the business with her husband, Grant Miller, on what got them first donating to the foundation.
The Sayres had asked them if they would help sponsor replacing the rescue surfboards at the beach, which Mallery-Sayre said had become delaminated.
But Kosaki said the problem was simple.
“We didn’t have $2,000 in the budget for new surfboards,” he said.
So the company made the money available to the foundation for the boards at the time. And, years later, the business is still helping the foundation out.
Higa-Miller said donating makes sense, as their business is heavily involved with swimming as well as bikes, and the lifeguards support their programs. In their business they see a lot of the work that lifeguards do.
“They really need a lot of support,” she said.
