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Fire crews assist boat run aground off Molokai

County / In Brief

A 30-foot sailboat with six people aboard ran aground on a reef about a half mile off Kalaeloa Point on Molokai’s south shore Sunday afternoon, fire officials said.

Two men, including the operator of the boat, stayed aboard the vessel Sunday night while three other men and one woman went ashore, where they spent the night, Fire Services Chief Ed Taomoto said. All of those aboard were in their 30s.

The two men who stayed aboard tried to free the sailboat from the reef at high tide at about 10 a.m. Monday, he said. A local resident used his boat to try to help free the vessel but was unsuccessful. Another attempt will be made to free the boat at high tide today.

The sailboat was not damaged, is not leaking fuel, and there were no injuries, Taomoto said.

The sailboat reportedly left from the Mala Wharf area in Lahaina on Sunday and was navigating towards shore when the vessel ran aground on the reef just west of the Wavecrest Resort on Kamehameha V Highway in Keawanui at about 5:30 p.m. It’s about 12 miles east of Kaunakakai.

An emergency call was made at 10:19 p.m., and Pukoo firefighters located the vessel on the reef, he said.

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