On May 21, 2026, the Honolulu Fire Department (HFD) received a 911 call at 12:34 p.m. and responded to a report of a lost hiker on the Pali Notches Trail in Kailua with 5 units staffed with 13 personnel. The first unit arrived on scene at 12:48 p.m. to prepare for a search and rescue operation by ground. Additional units established command and secured a nearby landing zone to prepare for air operations.
It was reported that a male in his 20s was hiking on the trail for about four hours. The hiker went off the trail and got lost after suffering a fall, rolling approximately 100 feet, and could not continue on his own. Air 1 arrived in the area and located the hiker visually at 1:43 p.m. Air 1 inserted rescue personnel at the hikerʻs side to prepare the hiker for extraction. The hiker was hoisted into Air 1 and was transported to the nearby landing zone at 2:10 p.m. Emergency Medical Services arrived shortly after and patient care was transferred at 2:27 p.m.
All HFD personnel were accounted for with no injuries.