gyppielou,

Who are you the moral policy??!?!

Island Mom doesn't have to apologize to anyone...Maybe you'll make me apologize, but I think what she said was a fair question. Yes, it may be sad that these people died but why is it that the minute someone dies everyone seems to forget some of the stupid things they did.

Why don't apologize to Island MOm for your language...geez...I wonder what you meant by "f", I'm sure no one understood it...I think YOU need to apologize to everyone for using such language...yeah, I'm start enough to hear what you actually said..... Why do people think that if they just use the first letter of a word, the meaning is different?!?!?

I don't want to add to anyones pain so I kept quiet. I do question choices these people made. It doesn't matter now though.

I apoligize to the board for my vulgarity, the meaning was intended not "different." however inappropriate. When, even with the best intentions we hurt people's feeling, it is common courtesy to acknowledge their feelings.

Ahhh... the expectations we place on others and what happens when they are not met...

I am sure I will get in trouble for this but I can find no explanation of why a trust fund has been set up for the boy who lost his parents. His mother was retired. His father ran his own business. His grandparents are going to raise him. I would think that a case should be made for financial need before soliciting contributions for a trust fund. Was the family wealthy? Was there life insurance? Why is a trust fund necessary?

In 1985 I went to the North shore of Oahu. I was about 20ish then and had no fear of waves. I thought the bigger the better. I don't recall seeing any warning signs, but I would have ignored them if I did.

I got out into the water and at first I was having a lot of fun in the waves. But the waves started getting bigger and bigger. I then turned my back to the sea, and heard the loudest roar that still haunts me today. I looked back and saw a wave about twice my height coming at me. I tried to run for the shore, but didn't make it. This big wave hit me from behind and knocked me face down into the sand. I tried to stand up, but the undertow pulled my feet out from under me and sucked me back out toward the sea. At that point I remember feeling sand going up into my nose as I was being slid face down by this wave. When I thought the wave had passed I tried to stand up again, but another wave knocked me down and I rolled like a ball on the sand. At this point my swimsuit had come off and I had sand in every possible place you don't want sand. This pattern repeated itself a few times when finally I felt someone grab my wrists and drag me out of the water. Thank God for that person, because I'm not sure I'd be here today if not for him.

I do swim in calm areas of the ocean now, but it was several years before I would go back into the ocean at all. Although it has been almost 20 years, I still am terrified of waves more than a foot tall. Also on a regular basis, I still have nightmares about being overpowered by huge waves. I was a young, foolish person who thought the warnings did not apply to me. I hope another such person is reading this and will heed all warning signs. If this posting helps anyone to avoid trouble, then it was time well spent by all of us. I am lucky to be alive, but so many are not.

Thanks kakalena for helping others with this important discussion.

We just returned from a 3-week trip to Hawaii. We spent a week at Hanalei Bay Resort on the north shore of Kauai. On April 1, 2004, I left the condo at 10:30 a.m. and drove to Tunnels Beach. The only stop I made on the way was at the overlook at Lumaha'i Beach known as South Pacific Beach. I took 3 pictures and continued on to Tunnels Beach. Later that day I learned that the emergency call came in at 11:06 a.m. concerning the double drowning at Lumaha'i Beach. (I heard the sirens when I was at Tunnels) I then realized that the 3 pictures I took had to be within about 10 minutes of the drowning. When I picked up my finished pictures yesterday I immediately looked at the 3 pictures I took at that beach. It was unbelievable how calm the water looked and the water was not splashing over the rocks. I could not see anyone on the beach in my pictures. But to realize that 3 people standing on those rocks had been washed into the ocean is unreal. So sad -- the water looked very calm. That was our 4th trip to the north shore of Kauai -- one of our favorite places.

We were at Ha'ena beach just north of Lumahai when the drowning happened and we heard the sirens. As kakalena says the water seemed rather calm. But there were NO SWIMMING signs posted in the surf that weren't there the day before (although to my untrained eye the water seemed calmer than it was the day before).

I noticed there were 85 replies on this post even though some were from the same people I hope this means that at least 50 people will now be more careful when going to the beach and some lives will be saved.

I think there have been 4 tourist drownings in the last two weeks.

This photo says it all:

http://www.ilovebacon.com/110405/c.shtml

In 1996, my children's father was simply meditating (with the group Temenos) in the North side of Maui (Paia) and a fellow from the group who was standing at the lava edge started having trouble with a wave that had knocked him down. He went to give a hand, when another wave came and took the three to the water. The other two made it out fine, yet his body was never found. I have read on here about warnings that the government, airlines, etc etc "should" distribute. How about the "warning" of several crosses on this site mean?

I posted this on Tripadvisor in 2009, I was surprised by my conclusion.

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Proceed at your own risk.

Always swim with a friend, always swim at beaches with life guards, make sure you ask about rip current locations, check with local dive/surf shops about the locations where you plan to swim.

I am a very good swimmer, grew up body surfing in southern California, and I was standing in 3 feet of water at Waimea Bay on the North Shore of Oahu one day when the wave grabbed me, tossed me around threw me up in the air and spit me out on the sand before I even had a chance to blink. Yes, 3 feet of water!

nanabee, YIKES the same happened to me at Waimea Bay!! Please see my post above dated April 14, 2004.

Geez this is an old thread.

I think Queen's Bath is a pass anytime of year. Once was enough and that was in July. In the summer there are too many people doing stupid things that I can't bear to watch and in the winter the surf makes it way too dangerous.