On March 2, 2024, the Honolulu Fire Department (HFD) received a 911 call at 10:06 a.m. for a rescue involving a dog off of the Waimano Trail in Pearl City and responded with 6 units staffed with 17 personnel. The first unit arrived at 10:22 a.m. and secured a landing zone nearby to prepare for air operations. The second-arriving unit ascended the trail on foot.

The caller reported that approximately 45 minutes into the hike, their pet dog fell 20 feet off the side of the trail and was now stuck on a steep mountain slope. Using the geolocation of the 911 caller, Air 1 was able to visually locate the dog and insert rescue personnel nearby. Rescue personnel rigged a rope rescue hauling system to assist with hoisting the dog back onto the trail. Once the rope rescue system was set up, rescue personnel rappelled down the slope, placed the dog into a harness connected to the hauling system, and hoisted the uninjured dog safely back onto the trail at about 11:15 a.m. The owner was reunited with their pet dog and descended the trail on their own.

All HFD personnel were accounted for with no injuries.

Hiking Safety Tips:
Keeping your dog on a short leash is important for safety, courtesy, and control. An off-leash dog can disappear out of sight, and if you can’t see what your dog is doing, you can’t prevent them from getting into trouble, like encountering another animal or eating something dangerous. If there are off-leash areas where you are hiking, only let your dog run free if you have verbal control of your dog, you can see your dog at all times, and you’ve worked on a reliable recall. Other tips can be found at akc.org