A hiker was rescued Sunday evening after apparently suffering a fractured leg while hiking in Waipio Valley.
Responding to the 5:39 p.m. report, Hawaii Fire Department rescue personnel made contact with a Good Samaritan at Malama Market in Honokaa who informed rescue personnel about the possibility of an injured visitor with a possible leg fracture in need of rescue near Hiilawe Falls in Waipio Valley. The reporting party had been asked by the patient and his friends to get help due to poor cell phone reception in the valley.
At the valley, 911 units were initially unclear about the location of the patient, and initially searched the Hiilawe Falls area with negative findings due to poor communication in the remote valley.
“With daylight disappearing quickly, Chopper 1 made a final attempt to search for the party before returning to quarters and located the party in darkness,” the department wrote in the release. The helicopter then lifted the injured man and took him to awaiting medics for transport to North Hawaii Community Hospital in Waimea.
The patient told rescue personnel that he was walking along the river toward Waipio Valley when a dead tree or log he was walking on gave way, according to the department. The patient and his friends attempted to return to their vehicle, but realized they would run out of daylight before making it back and asked a bystander to call 911.
“Patient’s friends attempted to carry him for most of the way as they attempted to walk back to vehicle, but progress was slow due to walking in/along river, and uneven terrain,” the department wrote in a media release.
The department listed the cause of the incident as “failing to adhere to stay at home orders and hiking in a large group in Waipio Valley.”