Petition garners more than 2,600 signatures asking Coast Guard to continue search for missing Kona fisherman

Family and friends of a missing Kona fisherman are collecting signatures to petition the U.S. Coast Guard to pick up its search for the 42-year-old who has now been missing at sea for a week.

As of 3 p.m. Thursday, the change.org petition garnered 2,611 signatures. The petition starter, Christian Baker, wrote that it was his personal plea to ask for the continuation of the Coast Guard search for Earl Kekuanaoa “Oa” Hind.

The Coast Guard suspended its search for Hind at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday after it and partner agency crews had searched 200,048 square nautical miles for more than 242 combined hours since beginning their search the afternoon of April 10.

As a fellow fisherman, Baker writes Hind’s disappearance “strikes a chord of fear and empathy within every one of us who battles the waves for our livelihood.”

During the active search for Hind, who launched his boat, “Makalapua Onalani,” from the South Point boat ramp on April 8, ocean conditions were not ideal.

The family has created a website that breaks down Hind’s timeline from when he entered the water to go fishing to his last sighting off Miloli‘i on April 9. Click here to see the timeline.

Coast Guard officials said emergency responders were dealing with 10-foot seas, 30-knot winds and choppy waters making it difficult to detect the missing boat.

Hind’s daughter, Makalapuaōnalani Alicia Hind, wrote a letter that was published by media outlets statewide saying ending the search now would be a terrible mistake.

“Weather conditions over the past week have limited visibility, but that is all the more reason to continue the search, especially with forecasts now predicting clearer skies and calmer seas in the days ahead,” Hind’s daughter stated. “With improved visibility, the chances of locating him increase dramatically.”

Makalapuaōnalani Hind said her father is a generational fisherman with more than 20 years of experience navigating the Pacific Ocean.

“My father is not only a seasoned seaman, he’s a survivor,” she stated. “He knows the ocean like the back of his hand. He knows how to catch fish, collect water, and endure.

“He has the skill, knowledge, and resilience to survive for weeks, even months out at sea. If anyone can make it through this, it’s him.”

On Thursday, Coast Guard officials said they would pick the search back up if there was new information, such as a sighting, that would lead to Hind’s location.

While the agency is saddened that the search yielded no results, officials said there were a lot of exhausted measures that went into finding Hind.

Makalapuaōnalani Hind said her family has mobilized local volunteers, organized search parties, and turned to social media to keep the search for her father in the public eye.

A GoFundMe started by family and friends has raised nearly $100,000 for search efforts to continue. In an update on the fundraiser, the family will continue the search using all assets available to them, including aircraft and boats.

“Friends, neighbors, and strangers from across the islands have joined in, holding onto hope alongside us,” Makalapuaōnalani Hind said.