No happy ending: Missing Hawaiian hiker Noah 'Kekai' Mina found dead
Less than a week after the sensational discovery and rescue of a hiker lost in a Hawaiian forest for 17 days, the search for another missing Hawaiian hiker has ended in tragedy.
A search helicopter on Wednesday discovered the body of Noah "Kekai" Mina, 35, at the bottom of a 300-foot fall line near the summit of Mauna Kahalawai, a 1.7 million-year-old volcano on Maui, family members said. Mina was reported missing May 20 while hiking in the West Maui Forest Reserve.
Mina's body was found five days after the stunning rescue of Amanda Eller, who was spotted by a helicopter search team near a creek bed. The same helicopter company, Windward Aviation, involved in the Eller search found Mina's body.
Mina's family thanked searchers and the general public for their support.
"We brought our son, brother and friend home today, just not the way we would have wanted and prayed for," the post said. "Thank You everyone who joined into this platform, of love and support for KEKAI. Your kind and loving sentiments meant the world to us, lifting us up every day."
Mina's parents, Vincent and Irene Mina, asked that all who showed concern for the fate of their son "continue to live life to the fullest, in sharing your hearts with others you love, and hug a little longer your sons and daughters tonight and beyond!"
An autopsy was scheduled to determine how Mina died. Keahi Bustamente, with the Hawaii Division of Forestry and Wildlife, was in the helicopter that located Mina’s body.
"We descended the fall line in the helicopter and about 300 feet down – the sun was perfectly lighting the area – and there was a second when the rotor wash blew open (brush) that was camouflaging his body," Bustamente told ABC News. "The light reflected from his skin. We were able to confirm it was Kekai.”
Eller, a physical therapist and yoga instructor, walked into Maui's Makawao Forest Reserve on May 8 and was not seen again for more than two weeks. She was airlifted to safety Friday with injuries that included a leg fracture, abrasions and sunburn.
Eller, 35, was released from a hospital Saturday. She thanked the hundreds of volunteers who conducted exhaustive searches, saying her days lost in the forest were the most difficult of her life.
"There were times of total fear and loss and wanting to give up," she said in video posted on Facebook. "It did come down to life and death."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: No happy ending: Missing Hawaiian hiker Noah 'Kekai' Mina found dead
