Woman dies after slipping from cliff into ocean and getting swept away, Hawaii cops say
A woman died after falling from a Hawaii cliff and into the ocean, police say.
The 29-year-old Kea‘au woman fell from the shoreline cliffs near Paradise Drive and Beach Road in Kea‘au shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 18, the Hawaii Police Department said in a Facebook post.
After the woman fell, police said the 31-year-old man she was with tried to help by throwing a “flotation device” to her.
The woman, however, was “pulled out by the ocean’s currents,” police said.
Multiple agencies, including the United States Coast Guard, searched for the woman by air, according to police.
Rescuers found her “unresponsive body approximately 4 miles down shore” in Pāhoa at about 8 a.m., police said.
She was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead, according to police.
An investigation into her death, which police are calling a “possible drowning,” is ongoing, authorities said, adding that an autopsy has been ordered.
Foul play is not suspected, police said.
The woman’s identity was withheld, pending the notification of next of kin, police said.
Kea‘au is about 9 miles southeast of Hilo.
This story was originally published February 20, 2024 at 10:41 AM with the headline "Woman dies after slipping from cliff into ocean and getting swept away, Hawaii cops say."
