Firefighters rescued a driver whose sedan became disabled and submerged in a swollen river bed early this morning in Ka‘u.
According to a Hawaii Fire Department statement, three units responded to the 4:42 a.m. alarm with the first unit arriving 16 minutes later to find fast-moving water surrounding the vehicle with the driver, who was alone, still inside.
The rescue occurred in Wood Valley on what was described as a “county roadway with predominantly drivable dry river bed” which had become swollen in the floodwaters.
The driver was uninjured.
The fire department didn’t name the roadway, but a police dispatch unrelated to the rescue advised drivers to avoid Mamalahoa Highway (Route 11) in the area of Kawa Bay in Ka‘u from the 56- to 62-mile markers because of continued flooding on the roadway.Drivers were also advised to avoid Kaalaiki Road, also known as Old Cane Haul Road in Naahehu, which were closed, with no open alternate routes.