Police say a diver who was rescued late Saturday afternoon along the Hamakua Coast late Saturday afternoon was pronounced dead a little more than an hour later at Hilo Medical Center.
The man was identified as 52-year-old Tavita Tahutini of Keaau, who was diving in the Umauma area near the 18-mile marker of Highway 19, north of Hilo.
Police are classifying it as a possible drowning, saying a friend of Tahutini’s told officers he had been diving for fish for a couple of hours and was knocked back into the water by waves while attempting to come ashore.
An earlier statement by the Hawaii Fire Department said the victim had fallen about 50 feet off a cliff into the water.
The man was extricated from the water by a county helicopter and taken to the hospital by ambulance.
Police say a coroner’s inquest has been opened and an autopsy ordered to determine the exact cause of death.