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Surfing death 05-10-12

Hawaiʻi Police Department
Puna Patrol
Captain Samuel Jelsma
Phone: 965-2716
Report No. C12012886

Media Release

A Big Island man died Thursday (May 10) from a surfing injury in lower Puna.

The victim has been identified as 42-year-old Nathan Keliikuli of Keaʻau.

At 10 a.m., Puna Patrol officers responded to a report of a surfing accident at Pohoiki Beach.

Officers learned that Keliikuli had reportedly fallen and hit his jaw on his surfboard while surfing. Bystanders found him unconscious and took him to shore, where they attempted cardio-pulmonary resuscitation until Fire Department rescue personnel arrived and took him to Hilo Medical Center in critical condition.

Keliikuli was pronounced dead at the hospital at 11:13 a.m.

The case is classified as a coroner’s inquest. Police have ordered an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.