The tourist who drowned last Friday at Lumahai Beach was Dan Hartwell, 50, of Denver, Colo., the Kaua’i Fire Department announced Tuesday. Hartwell was reportedly standing on rocks near the beach with several other people when he was swept into
The tourist who drowned last Friday at Lumahai Beach was Dan Hartwell, 50, of
Denver, Colo., the Kaua’i Fire Department announced Tuesday.
Hartwell was
reportedly standing on rocks near the beach with several other people when he
was swept into the ocean by high surf.
The Fire Department received a call
about the incident at 11:55 a.m. and dispatched lifeguards Carl Ragasa and
Chris Simpson, who are normally posted at Hanalei Beach.
The pair responded
on personal watercraft and reached Hartwell in less than 10 minutes. He was
brought ashore and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was administered to no avail,
officials said.
“Our emergency personnel responded very quickly and did
everything they could. The conditions were simply too hazardous that day. On a
remote beach like Lumahai, you’ve got to use extra caution,” fire chief David
Sproat said.
Hartwell died one day after a Hanapepe man, 22-year-old Jamie
Yamamoto, drowned near Po`ipu while spear fishing with his family, according to
authorities.
Last week’s victims raised the drowning toll on Kaua`i in 2000
to 12, the same number who lost their lives in the ocean surrounding Kaua`i in
1999.
Staff writer Dennis Wilken can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252)
and dwilken@pulitzer.net
