Two Waianae High School seniors fishing off Kaena Point on Saturday morning became the latest tragic casualties of one of Oahu’s most deceptively dangerous coastlines. Tony Siufanua and Maikah Hampp-Iriarte, both 17, died after one was swept off the rocks by a wave and the other dove in to help.
The incident occurred around 9:30 a.m. Saturday when the two teenagers were fishing near Yokohama Bay, according to Honolulu Star-Advertiser. When a wave swept one of them into the ocean, the other immediately jumped in to help. Neither returned. After searching for approximately 30 to 40 minutes, according to Hawaii News Now, Honolulu Ocean Safety personnel located the teens and brought them to shore at Yokohama Bay, where CPR was performed.
Both were transported to a hospital in critical condition but later died. The city Medical Examiner’s Office identified them as Maikah Hampp-Iriarte and Tony Siufanua, both of Waianae, as reported by Honolulu Star-Advertiser. The cause and manner of their deaths are pending, and there were no signs of suspicious activity or foul play.
A Community Mourns Its Own
By Monday night, a growing memorial had drawn loved ones to Kaena Point, the last place the two 17-year-olds were seen alive. “I miss my brothers, that’s all,” Glenn Chaves-Keawe told Hawaii News Now, fighting through tears to remember the two young men he’d grown up with. Friend Shaiden Kealoha-Nakila described the loss as devastating: “Truly hurt. This is something that came unexpected.”…