This season has been a particularly treacherous one for Pipeline surfers. It all started with Joao Chianca getting knocked unconscious in December. Shortly after, Joaquin Del Castillo shattered his pelvis and Koa Rothman bashed his head in. Then, as a result of an accident at the Pipe Masters competition, Eimeo Czermak got saddled with a $55,000 hospital bill. At the Da Hui Backdoor shootout, Kai Lenny cracked a helmet on the reef.
Unfortunately, as of Monday, there is one more Pipeline casualty: 25-year-old Long Beach, New York surfer Austin Gibbons. While surfing the wave on Monday, the day the Pipe Pro was on hold, Gibbons was rendered unconscious, after which he was rescued by local surfers and lifeguards and sent to the hospital.
News of the rescue first came on Monday. KHON2 News reported that a 911 call came in shortly after 6:30 p.m., just as the lifeguard tower was closing. Luckily, lifeguards were still in the parking lot and beachgoers were able to alert them to the emergency. Other surfers brought Austin to shore, after which the lifeguards took over. Assisted by other off-duty lifeguards from neighboring towers, they pulled him onto the sand and began to administer CPR. After several cycles, he regained a pulse.
From there, he was tended to by Honolulu Emergency Medical Services and then transported to an emergency room. As of Monday, he was reported to be in critical condition.
The identity of the rescued surfer was discovered when fellow New York surfer and 2022 Pipe Masters winner Balaram Stack called for well wishes for Austin on Instagram. “Say a prayer for Austin Gibbons,” he wrote in a now-expired Instagram story, “Went down at pipe yesterday, in the ICU now. U got this kid”
