Olomana Trail Deaths: How many people have died on Olomana trail?

According to reports, 4 people have died on Olomana Trail. Hiking Olomana can be dangerous, especially between the second and third peaks when it is wet. Jacqueline Turner fell 150 feet in 2004 but survived.

On the same day, Mel Yoshioka, another hiker, fell while descending the backside of Olomana’s second peak. He, too, made it.

Ryan Suenaga, a 44-year-old experienced hiker, died in the same location in April 2011, and Mitchell Kai, a 27-year-old off-duty Honolulu Firefighter, died in the same part in January 2014.

In June 2015, a 52-year-old former Navy veteran died after falling around 200 feet, the third fatality atop Olomana in four years.

A guy was discovered 400 feet below the hiking trail on April 1, 2018. He was flown to a nearby park by helicopter, where he was pronounced dead.

Olomana is not a state-approved trail, and parts of the terrain, especially near the first peak, can be rather treacherous.

“It’s slippery if it’s raining, it’s very steep, and some portions you’ll have to rock climb and lapel down it,” Mendes added. “On that first peak, you have to lapel your way down, which is pretty dangerous if you don’t like heights.”