POIPU, Hawaii (KHON2) — Wisconsin visitor Matt Jacobus was visiting Kauai for his brother’s wedding. The triathlete said he had been swimming around Poipu for a few days and decided to go for another swim at Kiahuna Beach on Nov. 7.
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“The water seemed to be relatively calm, there weren’t really big waves or anything it seemed like a calm day,” Jacobus said.
He said he was snorkeling for less than 10 minutes when he noticed the ocean floor was seemingly dropping.
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“The depth seemed to have dropped to around 20 to 25 feet which I thought was odd because I thought I was still close to the beach,” he recalled. “I poked my head up and looked towards the shore and I saw I was over 100 yards away.”
He said he did everything wrong at first. He said he gasped, which caused him to inhale water which made him panic even more, and then he started trying to fight the rip.