UPDATED (9:30 p.m. 4/7/10)
Fire/rescue crews resumed their search for missing swimmer Ryan J. Ritzel Wednesday morning (April 7). Divers searched the waters of the Wailuku, while a helicopter continued an aerial search of the area down to Reeds Island.
Divers were being cautious of the turbulent waters of the Wailuku River as a flash flood watch was issued for the Big Island.
Crews will resume the search at first light Thursday.
No signs of the swimmer have been found since Tuesday afternoon (April 6), when his cruise ship co-workers said he attempted to swim across the river.
Photography and story by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7
Chopper One flies over the Wailuku River near Rainbow Falls searching for missing swimmer Ryan J. Ritzel, 24, of Soquel, California.
Fire/rescue crews are searching a rain swollen Wailuku River after a swimmer was reported to have gone missing at the Boiling Pots area Tuesday afternoon (April 6).
Ryan J. Ritzel, 24, of Soquel, California was last seen by friends trying to swim to the other side of the river and could not be located by them.
The fire department’s Chopper One flew along the Wailuku River below the treeline between Boiling Pots and down to the ocean searching for the swimmer.
Boiling Pots State Park was closed as county crews including fire, medics and police staged in the area for a rescue of the missing swimmer. A ground search was made along the banks of the river but the water was too rough to enter, according to a fire dispatch report.
The search was postponed due to nightfall and will resume in the morning.
POLICE MEDIA RELEASE
Big Island police have opened a missing person case in connection with a cruise ship employee who disappeared while swimming at Boiling Pots in Hilo.
In response to a 1:50 p.m. call, police responded to Boiling Pots, where Ryan J. Ritzel, 24, of Soquel, California, had been swimming with five coworkers. When his companions discovered he was missing, they called 911.
Ritzel is described as Caucasian, 5-foot-9, with a slim build, short brown hair and blue eyes. He was wearing white and blue swimming trunks.
Fire Department personnel have been searching the area but have been unable to locate him.
Police ask that anyone with information on his whereabouts call the Police Department’s non-emergency line at 935-3311.
