Hawaii
Dangerous Hawaii river lures visitors to their deaths
One of the deadliest places on the island of Hawaii is also a state park. The Wailuku River State Park in Hilo includes the state’s second longest river, where visitors and locals take in the natural beauty at two lookouts: the 80-foot-tall Rainbow Falls and an area about 1.5 miles farther upstream known as “Boiling Pots,” where there are more waterfalls and pools.
Hundreds of thousands of visitors per year frequent the picturesque area to see the different falls, while locals will sometimes spend afternoons there picnicking. But Wailuku, which translates to “waters of destruction,” refers to how dangerous this river can be. Warning signs discourage locals and visitors from stepping beyond the trail and railings; however, some people choose to ignore them.
Over the past 29 years, 27 people have died in these waters. In November 2017, a San Diego couple died after being swept away by a current above Rainbow Falls. In March 2022, the body of a Hilo man was found floating at the bottom of the falls.
The last fatality occurred at Boiling Pots in September when witnesses saw a Florida man “enter the water and immediately be pulled under the rapids,” according to a Hawaii News Now report. The Hawaii Fire Department recovered his body about 30 feet underwater.
Despite its name, Boiling Pots is not hot. It’s in reference to its large terraced pools created by the erosion of old lava flows. On calm days, it looks like individual pots of water, but when the water is turbulent, the water appears to be boiling.
Even on calm days, swimmers have drowned. Strong currents, coupled with the underwater geology of tunnels, ridges and shelves, can trap them and make it impossible to resurface.
“We are quite used to the helicopters and other emergency personnel spending hours and days searching for people and often for bodies at Boiling Pots,” Hawaii County Councilmember Jennifer Kagiwada, who lives in the neighborhood, told SFGATE in an email.
She recently proposed that new signs be installed, which would list the dates of when people have died in this section of the Wailuku River, as a way of discouraging visitors from bypassing the other warning signs already there.
“Since about half the deaths in this part of the river were visitors and half locals, it is important that everyone becomes aware of the dangers here. Some very strong swimmers have died, along with visitors with fewer water skills,” she said.
This strategy has worked on hiking trails, such as at Olomana Trail on Oahu, where six hikers fell to their deaths within a 13-year time span. Since its sign was posted two years ago, there have been zero fatalities on the windward trail. On Kauai, the Kalalau Trail also has handmade signs counting deaths, which instruct visitors to pause and assess the waters before deciding whether or not to cross the stream.
Although an additional sign may help, Hawaii Fire Department Chief Kazuo Todd told Hawaii News Now that it can’t be placed at every point of the river, so sharing information about the dangers is important. “Educating friends, family, relatives that are visiting, or even just people getting off of various ships that are coming to port as part of the tour operations,” he said.
Kagiwada, who held a community meeting about the new sign proposal in November, said she is in contact with the Hawaii State Department of Land and Natural Resources, which manages the state park, and is providing feedback from constituents.
The state department told SFGATE that community input is being considered. “After any revision process, the sign may take up to three weeks (or more) to receive depending on materials in stock, and the installation date and location is to be determined,” the department said.
Editor’s note: SFGATE recognizes the importance of diacritical marks in the Hawaiian language. We are unable to use them due to the limitations of our publishing platform.
December 23, 2025, 9:01 PM HST
Episode 39 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began at 8:10 p.m. HST on Dec. 23, according to an update from the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. Sustained lava fountains approximately 100 feet in height are currently erupting from both north and south vents, with increasing heights.
Past episodes have produced incandescent lava fountains over 1,000 feet high that produce eruptive plumes up to 20,000 feet above ground level. According to the National Weather Service, winds are blowing from the northeast direction, which suggests that volcanic gas emissions and volcanic material may be distributed to the southwest.
- All eruptive activity is confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park; commercial airports in Hawai’i County (KOA and ITO) will not be affected by this activity.
- Three Kīlauea summit livestream videos that show eruptive lava fountains are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@usgs/streams
- KPcam and MKcam provide views of the plume height for aviation purposes
Episode 39 was preceded by overflows of degassed lava that began at approximately 6:41 p.m. from the south vent and continued to increase in intensity until 8:10 p.m., when sustained fountaining began, according to the HVO.
Most episodes of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since Dec. 23, 2024, have continued for around a day or less and have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting generally at least several days.
No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.
Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.
HONOLULU — A pair of former college teammates will face off when Hawaii takes on California in the Hawaii Bowl on Wednesday.
Hawaii coach Timmy Chang and Cal interim coach Nick Rolovich were quarterbacks at Hawaii and teammates for two seasons in 2000-01.
Chang made 50 career starts in four years, while Rolovich started 12 games over two seasons.
“I’m grateful to be here with Timmy, so much great history with us,” Rolovich said on Monday.
He pointed out that the 15,000-seat Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex where they’ll play on Christmas Eve sits on what previously served as the Rainbow Warriors’ practice facility, Cooke Field, where Rolovich was first introduced to Chang.
“I think that makes it even more special, that the game’s not only played in Hawaii, but played kind of right there in that spot,” Rolovich said.
Chang, in his fourth year leading Hawaii (8-4), said he and Rolovich were roommates on the road in their playing days.
Hawaii head coach Timmy Chang in the first half during an NCAA football game against Arizona on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz. Credit: AP/Rick Scuteri
“We ended up building a close bond,” he said. “I got to learn so much from this guy here, just watching him go through everything that a college student-athlete goes through, the ups, the downs. There’s so many things that I learned from Rolo. … (We were) just kids at 18 to 20, 21 years old, coming together and now look at us here. It’s special, it really is.”
Bowl-ing season
Hawaii will be making its 15th bowl appearance and its 10th in the Hawaii Bowl. The last postseason appearance for the Rainbow Warriors came in 2019, when they beat BYU in the Hawaii Bowl. They earned a bid to their hometown bowl in 2021, but were forced to withdraw due to COVID issues within the program.
Cal (7-5) will be playing its 27th bowl game. It earned bids to the LA Bowl in each of the past two seasons, but lost to Texas Tech in 2023 and UNLV a year ago. The Golden Bears are seeking their first eight-win season since 2019.
Inside the numbers
Both teams have found success passing the ball this season. Hawaii ranks ninth in the FBS in passing offense at 289.7 yards per game, while Cal’s average of 270.8 yards ranks 21st. Opponents have averaged 197.1 passing yards against the Golden Bears, the 37th best mark in the country, while Hawaii has surrendered an average of 218 yards through the air (62nd in FBS).
Cal ranks last (134th) in rushing offense at a mere 76.5 yards per game. Hawaii’s 104 rushing yards per game ranks 125th nationally.
Southpaw slingers
Both starting quarterbacks are left-handed and hail from neighboring towns on the west side of the island of Oahu. Cal’s Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who has passed for 3,117 yards with 20 total touchdowns, is a true freshman from Ewa Beach, while Hawaii’s Micah Alejado calls Kapolei his hometown. The redshirt freshman has logged 2,832 yards through the air and tallied 22 total TDs.
All-Americans
Cal defensive back Hezekiah Masses and Hawaii placekicker Kansei Matsuzawa each received All-America recognition for their respective senior campaigns. Masses recorded five interceptions, 18 passes defended and 43 tackles en route to an AP second-team selection, while Matsuzawa converted 25 of 26 field goals and all 37 of his extra-point attempts to earn AP first-team honors.
Change at the top
Rolovich was named interim coach after Justin Wilcox was fired on Nov. 23. Just six days after the coaching change, Cal upset then-No. 21 SMU 38-35 with Rolovich at the helm. On Dec. 4, the school announced the hiring of Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi as the program’s coach. Rolovich will remain on staff for the Golden Bears as quarterbacks coach and assistant head coach.
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Planning to go to the Hawaii Bowl? City leaders are encouraging fans to utilize public transportation.
The Hawaii Bowl will take place Christmas Eve in front of a sold-out crowd at the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.
To help attendees get to and from the game, the city Department of Transportation Services (DTS) is ramping up bus services that connect Skyline’s Ahua Lagoon rail station and the UH Manoa campus.
“We want fans focused on the game, not on traffic or parking. TheBus and Skyline offer the safest and easiest way to get to UH Manoa and back home to celebrate the holiday with family,” Mayor Rick Blangiardi said.
Regular TheBus U Line service (Ahua Lagoon Drive Skyline Station–UH Manoa via the H-1 Freeway) will operate throughout the day.
To improve travel for game attendees, DTS will also run additional U Line service every 15 minutes between 12:15 p.m. and 2:45 p.m.
Along with the U Line and Skyline, the A Line (Ahua Lagoon Drive Skyline Station – UH Manoa) will be running regular weekday service between the Ahua Lagoon Drive Station and Sinclair Circle at UH Manoa.
Fans can also reach UH Manoa on Routes 1, 1L, 4, 6, and 13.
DTS encourages riders to plan ahead using the Transit App to map out routes, check arrival times, and stay on top of travel options.
Regular fares will be in effect for Skyline and TheBus. All annual and monthly fares are valid for Skyline and TheBus.
Copyright 2025 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
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