Man gets sucked into blowhole

[Dimethyl]

Witnesses who watched a Northern California man get sucked into a Maui blow hole to his apparent death say that the tourist was dancing around and frolicking in the sprays of water moments before a wave knocked him down.

Rocco Piganelli, of La Jolla, Calif., said he stared in horror as he watched a large wave push the tourist into the hole off Nakalele Point on Saturday afternoon. The man popped up briefly with the next wave, then disappeared.

"We all stared for like 30 seconds and then I realized — he's gone. He's down there," Piganelli told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Wednesday. "I felt like I was going to throw up."

Piganelli, a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines, readied himself to attempt to resuscitate the man, fully expecting him eventually surface. But the man never did.

"The girl who was with him let out this horrifying scream," he said.

He and other tourists scrambled over a cliff to look for the man out in the ocean as powerful waves crashed violently against sharp rocks.

"In my heart, I kind of knew he wasn't coming out," Piganelli said. "I wanted to give him hope because it was all I could do."

The blowhole, which is featured in several travel websites, was created by pounding surf that undercut and wore away a lava shelf. Every wave pushes water and air through the hole, creating an eruption similar to a geyser. The Halona Blowhole on Oahu is another popular tourist attraction.

An aerial and sea search for David Potts, 44, of San Anselmo, was called off Monday.

Maui police Lt. Wayne Ibarra said rough waters on the northern side of Maui and poor visibility complicated the search.

Moments before Potts was washed away, Piganelli snapped a photograph of his daughter and friends. A giant spray of water is captured high above the three girls standing in their bikinis. A closer look at the photo, obtained by AP, shows a man in shorts standing next to the blow hole behind the curtain of water. Piganelli identifies the man as the victim.

Maui police said it had not seen the photo and could not immediately verify if the man was Potts.

Erica Meyer, whose family is vacationing with Piganelli's family, recalled thinking that it was foolish for the man to be mere inches from the blow hole's opening.

"We're watching it thinking it's crazy these guys are doing that," she told the AP.

Potts stood in front of the blow hole with his back to the ocean when the wave hit, Meyer said. "It was very, very fast, within a matter of seconds."

That's when chaos and screaming ensued. Someone called 911. Bystanders tried to prevent the girlfriend's brother from jumping in to find Potts.

"It was just horrific," Meyer said. "That's the only way to describe the scene."

Horrible way to die.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43749129/ns/us_news/

 

[oxodium]

That's awful .
What a terrible way to go.

 

[borntobeBossirl]

just sad.

 

[turtles turtles]

I dont understand what a blow hole is?! :/

Explain because that didn't :/

 

[Dimethyl]

I dont understand what a blow hole is?! :/

Explain because that didn't :/

They are lava tubes under water that are exposed on the surface causing water to shoot out when a wave hits. This particular one is the Nakalele blowhole located in Maui, Hawaii. They look like this.

[YOUTUBE]MhIeswqlpPI[/YOUTUBE]

 

[Rune Guru]

Wow, Thats really scary when you think about it. So Sad.

 

[Sillymonkey]

Teach him to dance at nature. Caught him by surprise.

 

[FLUFFY WABBIT]

They are lava tubes under water that are exposed on the surface causing water to shoot out when a wave hits. This particular one is the Nakalele blowhole located in Maui, Hawaii. They look like this.

[YOUTUBE]MhIeswqlpPI[/YOUTUBE]

Thanks was going to have to youtube it but you already did for me But sucks to have died that way but i would rather that way then say..hit by a car

 

[DMR]

Thanks was going to have to youtube it but you already did for me But sucks to have died that way but i would rather that way then say..hit by a car

Drowning to death is such a more painful way to die than get hit by a car. The guy died in the worst way possible to me. It looks scary, I wouldn't even dare step close to it. May he rest in peace.

 

[slysteeler]

That is quite a different way to die, but it is really horrible. I thought blow holes expel water, so they wouldn't really have much suction. I hope they managed to retrieve the body.

RIP

 

[Tmx]

Thats horrible...godbless his family

 

[Dimethyl]

Thanks was going to have to youtube it but you already did for me But sucks to have died that way but i would rather that way then say..hit by a car

No problem. I would much rather get hit by car considering it would most likely kill you instantly. This guy fell into a small crevice, which is bad enough alone. It probably took a while for him to drown down there also considering the water rises and then drops.

That is quite a different way to die, but it is really horrible. I thought blow holes expel water, so they wouldn't really have much suction. I hope they managed to retrieve the body.

RIP

That's what I thought too. I think he probably got knocked down and fell in rather than really getting sucked into it.

 

[Egu]

That's very unfortunate, but at least he died an interesting way.

 

[Revolight]

That sucks...

 

[Empyreal]

That's awful, dying in the water is my absolute worst nightmare. Even though I can swim I've always had a fear of the ocean and drowning under intense water pressure would just be probably the worst thing I can imagine.