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<br /> COUNTY OF HAWAII STATE OF HAWAII
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<br /> RESOLUTION NO. 663 18
<br /> A RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE HAWAII STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES
<br /> TO INCLUDE IN ITS 2019 LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE,A RESOLUTION URGING THE
<br /> LEGISLATURE TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO EMPLOY LIFEGUARDS AND TO
<br /> PURCHASE A LIFEGUARD TOWER AND RESCUE EQUIPMENT FOR KUA BAY AT
<br /> KEKAHA KAI STATE PARK.
<br /> WHEREAS, Kua Bay at Kekaha Kai State Park(Kua Bay) in North Kona, is under the
<br /> jurisdiction of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), and currently does not
<br /> provide lifeguard protection; and
<br /> WHEREAS, lifeguards (water safety officers) act as primary responders for onshore
<br /> emergencies, provide injury control, and dispatch ocean rescue services to address dangerous
<br /> incidents in nearshore waters, where the majority of ocean recreation activity takes place; and
<br /> WHEREAS, the Hawai`i State Department of Health, Injury Prevention and Control
<br /> Division and the Hawai`i Fire Department, Ocean Safety Division, have reported that from 2008
<br /> through 2018, there have been more than three fatal drownings, three near drownings, 10 spinal
<br /> cord injuries, as well as cardiac arrests, shark sightings, other serious and minor injuries, and
<br /> numerous distressed swimmers at Kua Bay; and
<br /> WHEREAS, skilled-lifeguards, appropriate rescue equipment, and a lifeguard tower to
<br /> provide adequate field of sight, are all essential to save lives and prevent injuries at the heavily-
<br /> visited Kua Bay; and
<br /> WHEREAS, West Hawai`i residents have repeatedly voiced strong concerns regarding
<br /> the alarming number of reported and unreported incidents which have occurred at Kua Bay; and
<br /> WHEREAS, annual operational costs to employ four lifeguards at Kua Bay as estimated
<br /> by the Hawai`i Fire Department, Ocean Safety Division, would total $321,696 (salary and
<br /> benefits of$80,424 per lifeguard, to staff a two person lifeguard tower, seven days per week); and
<br /> WHEREAS,the start-up costs for equipment as estimated by the Hawai`i Fire
<br /> Department, Ocean Safety Division, for Kua Bay for thefirst year would total $80,000: $60,000
<br /> for a lifeguard tower(one-time start-up cost); $8,000 for an all-terrain vehicle (to be replaced
<br /> every four years); $8,000 for radios (to be replaced every four years); $3,000 for rescue
<br /> equipment (bi-annually); $1,000 for personal protective equipment (annually); and
<br /> WHEREAS, the total for operational costs, together with start-up costs of equipment for
<br /> the first year is $401,696, with an annual budgeted amount of$325,696 for three years thereafter;
<br /> now, therefore,
<br />
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