Surprised no one posted this!
15 foot tigers 30 to 50 feet out at Hapuna and in shallow water ...
Hapuna and Wailea beaches completely closed, as in no parking, no entry, no fun on the sand. Read that Spenser and Mauna Kea beaches had concerns too ... they are all close together.
kgmb9.com/main/index.php…
Will evaluate tomorrow.
Oddly enough, two years ago this same time of year (late August, early September) there were a bunch of tiger shark sightings prompting closing of the same areas ...
Another odd thing is that windward Oahu beaches Kailua, Lanikai, Bellows had an agressive shark sighted and beaches closed (possible victim, not confirmed).
This is the Civil Defense Warning page. If there%26#39;s a continuing closure it should be posted here tomorrow:
http://co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/message.htm
I%26#39;ve never worried about sharks here but tigers are mean and I sure would worry being in the water near one!
Kohala beaches closed - tiger sharks sighted
Oh my! I%26#39;m leaving tomorrow (Monday the 8th) for Oahu and arrive on the BI on the 10th.
I had planned for the first half of the vacation to be relaxing along the ocean and swimming time. Please sharks go away!
I will check these sites later tonight.
Thanks for the heads up KK.
Kohala beaches closed - tiger sharks sighted
http://co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/message.htm
is the county CD notice
They come and go so take it day by day.
The County has no message for today. Whether because the beaches are open, or because it%26#39;s Sunday and they don%26#39;t update on Sundays, I can%26#39;t say.
lovemydoggy, I%26#39;m wishing you good fortune! ;-)
I would be surprised if this continued. I don%26#39;t think it%26#39;s happened like this since two years ago. and that didn%26#39;t extend too long. There are always tigers out there, but it%26#39;s unusual for them to come in so close.
Maybe there is some food source (not people) that they are after.
That said, I was reading a page on how not to become shark brunch, and it said that if you ever injure yourself in the water and start bleeding, even a little, that you should get out immediately, because sharks can sense even a tiny amount of blood from quite a distance and you could draw them in.
(It%26#39;s easy to scrape oneself on rocks and coral)
Thanks for the well wishes KK!
I%26#39;m not much of an ocean swimmer myself. I%26#39;ll go in to get wet and then go lay on the beach. However, hubby likes to play in the ocean. He%26#39;s not too concerned about the shark sighting either.
I guess I am just easier to scare.
Sunday is up on Monday, but what about today?
09/07/08
This is a shark sighting and beach closure notification for Sunday, September 07, 2008 at 11:00. A Hawai’i Fire Department (HFD) aerial survey reports the sighting of three sharks in the area between Puako and Mauna Kea Beach. Between 9:00 and 9:30 this morning, a 10-12’ Tiger shark was seen approximately 600 yards outside the Puako boat ramp, an 8’ shark of unknown type was seen approximately 300 yards off Maumae Beach, and an 8’ foot shark of unknown type was approximately 200 yards off Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.
State Parks has closed Hapuna and Wailea Beaches for the remainder of the day.
No other public beaches are affected at this time all other County and State Beach Parks are open at this time.
Anyone planning to visit beaches in the South Kohala area is asked to exercise caution and obey any posted warnings from the Department of Natural Resources (DLNR) regarding unsafe conditions.
We were staying in the Kohala coast area last week and were snorkeling at the Mauna Kea beach on Tuesday (Sept. 2) in the morning. We were at the far southern end of the beach, near the rocks, having a great time...except for the helicopters that kept buzzing overhead. Silly us...thought it was sightseeing tours. Then a lifeguard paddled up in a kayak and told us to get out of the water immediately as there was a 12 foot tiger shark ';right around the corner from us.'; His theory was that the shark was interested in the large manta ray that was hanging out a few feet offshore from the main beach area.
We never did spot the shark, and spent the rest of the morning just enjoying the sand and view and dipping our feet.
It was reassuring to know that civil defense is really vigilent!
09/08/08
This is a shark sighting and beach closure notification for Monday, September 08, 2008 at 10:45AM. A Hawai’i Fire Department (HFD) aerial survey reports the sighting of 10-15 sharks, 200 yards off shore, in the area between Maumae Beach and Spencer Beach Park. The sharks are of unknown type and feeding off a school of fish.
• State Parks has closed Hapuna and Wailea Beaches for the remainder of the day.
• Spencer Beach park is also closed until further notice.
• Anyone planning to visit beaches in the South Kohala area is asked to exercise caution and obey any posted warnings from the Department of Natural Resources (DLNR) regarding unsafe conditions.
• Please obey Ocean Safety personnel if advised to leave the water.
The HFD and the Department of Land and Natural Resources will continue to monitor for shark activity. Conditions will be re-evaluated tomorrow morning.
_____________
there%26#39;s a number for Civil Defense that you can probably call if you want to know about the beach closure on the day of, as the posting is running a day after.
935-0031
And it continues ...
20 feet off shore at the Mauna Kea, in broad daylight, so much for not swimming in murky waters, dawn, and dusk!
09/11/08
four (4) Tiger sharks in nearshore waters between Hapuna Beach and Kawaihae. There are confirmed reports of 15 large sharks from Waialea Bay to Kawaihae Small Boat Harbor area.
• Hapuna and Wailea Beaches remain closed.
• Spencer Beach park is also closed until further notice.
A recap of the week from the DLNR (as of 9/11)
________
According to Hawai‘i County Civil Defense, four sharks were seen in this morning’s flyover: a 12 -footer was observed by Ocean Safety about 20 yards off shore at Hapuna State Recreation Area.
Another three were seen by the Hawaii Fire Department about 100 to 200 yards off Mau‘umae bay near the Mauna Kea Resort, ranging from 12-16 feet long. One of these sharks was observed by Pu‘u Kohola National Historic Park personnel coming in close to Kawaihae small boat harbor.
“The continued closures of these areas are precautionary measures to ensure the safety of the public,” says Laura H. Thielen, DLNR Chairperson.
Due to the continued sightings of sharks along the Kohala Coast the beaches at these parks will remain closed for the rest of the day until an assessment tomorrow morning in which officials will determine to either open the beaches or issue orders to keep the beaches closed.
Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area is closed in its entirety.
Spencer County Beach Park remains open on the park portion; however, water entry is prohibited.
On September 5, the area of Waialea Bay and Hapuna Beach SRA were closed and remained closed throughout the weekend due to a shark sighting in these areas.
September 8, 15 large sharks ranging in size from 6-15 feet of unconfirmed species were sighted from Waialea Bay to
Kawaihae Small Boat Harbor (SBH).
On September 9, the assessment confirmed the presence of sharks in the near ocean waters from Waialea Bay to Kawaihae SBH. There was also a confirmed sighting of a 10 foot tiger shark 20 feet off shore from the Mauna Kea Beach Resort.
On September 10 there were confirmed shark sightings between Mau‘umae Beach and Kawaihae Harbor; three beach parks were closed (the entire Hapuna-Waialea SRA was closed; Spencer County Beach Park is closed for routine maintenance through Friday).
This news article is interesting
honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article…
';Several experts suggested some shark species, especially tigers, may come into shallower waters at this time of year for mating.'; ';Randy Honebrink, spokesman for the state Shark Task Force, said September and October are believed to be when tiger sharks mate and that an increase in sightings is normal.';
';There is no sign of anything out there that they%26#39;re feeding on. These are big guys, 10- to 15-footers, so we close the beaches for public safety. We had it happen last year for a few weeks at this time, then they just left. We don%26#39;t know why they come or go.';
The beaches have been closed for a week and its up to the sharks to leave.....could be a looooooong time as they appear to be mating....
Hey when you enter the ocean you enter the food chain,,,, and not at the top.
Mantas????.... The Tigers fave snack is green sea turtles..
By the way ALL snorkeling and swiming is open in Kona, no problem here.
There are thousands of sharks in the ocean and they do a great amount of good....in fact the health of the ocean depends on them....its their ocean.
Thank God, we dont have the shark cage jerk tours here that are actively training sharks that humans are a good food source... and luering them in closer and closed to Oahu beaches..... where there was an attack yesterday.
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