Visitor Rescued During Downwind Run on Paddle Board

Spreckelsville, “Baby Beach”, file photo by Wendy Osher.

A visitor was rescued from waters off of Spreckelsville on Thursday night after she became separated from her standup paddle boarding companion while making a downwind run from Maliko Bay, fire officials said.

The 30-year-old woman from Oakland, CA, used a cell phone to call for assistance at 5:32 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 17. Fire officials say the woman sought help after losing sight of her partner, a male paddler from Makawao, and after having difficulty finding their destination at Kaʻa Point.

At 5:42 p.m., Kahului firefighters began searching the “Baby Beach” area of Spreckelsville, while the department’s Air 1 helicopter and rescue watercraft searched offshore for the woman.

Maui Fire Services Officer Edward Taomoto said darkness forced Air 1 to abandon the search; however, the rescue watercraft eventually found the paddler about a half-mile off of Stable Road, at the end of the airport runway.

At 6:30 p.m., the paddler was brought in with no injuries, at Kaʻa Point in Kanahā, also known as “Kite Beach.”

An engine and rescue crew out of Kahului, Air 1, and Pāʻia firefighters responded to the rescue call.