High surf hitting Oahu led to 100 Lifeguard rescues Monday.
It’s no secret Oahu’s lifeguards are among some of the most respected watermen in the world. Well, they were put to the test Monday and passed with flying colors when a south swell brought solid surf to the island. According to Honolulu Emergency Medical Services, lifeguards recorded an astonishing 100 ocean rescues and 2,800 preventative actions during a high surf advisory. Preventative actions are defined by the department as “times a lifeguard prevented a beachgoer in advance from doing something unsafe.”
Kurt Lager, acting chief for the Honolulu Emergency Services Department’s Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services Division, told the media the 100-rescue mark isn’t all that rare on the south shore considering how many tourists come to Honolulu this time of year. Now add all the surfers — even the experienced ones — flooding lineups across town with a solid south swell on tap, and Honolulu’s lifeguards had themselves a busy Monday. Lager said they have “a handful” of days that are just as busy each summer.
“The really big days tend not to be when we see the most rescues,” said Lager. “It’s the in-between days when the waves don’t look as bad, but there is still a lot of water moving around, that we see the most rescues.”
Honolulu Emergency Medical Services data shows that Ala Moana, Sandy Beach, Hanauma Bay, and Waikiki record the most preventative actions from its lifeguards each year. The latter two spots, of course, are two of Hawaii’s most popular tourist beaches. In 2022, for example, they recorded over 133,000 preventative actions at Ala Moana compared to just 55 rescues. Meanwhile, Waikiki saw over 200,000 preventative actions and 963 rescues in the same year.
“Waikiki is the most crowded beach on Oahu on any given day, with thousands of visitors at the beach from the nearby hotels,” Lager said. “It is not uncommon for lifeguards to make hundreds of rescues and thousands of preventative actions in Waikiki alone when we have high surf warnings.”
