Search ends for Pāhoa woman reported missing on Sunday while picking ‘opihi

The search for a 29-year-old woman from Pāhoa, who went missing on July 9 while picking ʻopihi, has been called off after a three-day search.

Hawai‘i Fire Department and the U.S. Coast Guard searched for Shanice Ogata-Staudinger —by land, air and sea — from Sunday evening till Wednesday afternoon. They did not find any signs of her.

Family initially reported her missing Sunday at around 6:30 p.m. A male relative told police that he and Ogata-Staudinger were picking ʻopihi (snails) when they got separated at about 11 a.m. on Sunday in the area of Kahakai Boulevard and Papio Street in Pāhoa — at a spot commonly known as “Hau Bush.”

The relative, who was not identified, told police that Ogata-Staudinger had failed to return to their prearranged meeting spot on Sunday afternoon.

Authorities described the area as cliffy with no good entry or exit points to and from the ocean. They had no confirmation Ogata-Staudinger entered the water.