30-year-old Kapa‘a man dies after struggling in waters off Lydgate Beach

A 30-year-old Kapa‘a man is dead after struggling the morning of April 12 in waters off Lydgate Beach Park about a mile south of Wailua.

Kaua‘i first responders were dispatched to the park about a mile south of Wailua after receiving a call at about 10:45 a.m. for a swimmer in distress.

Preliminary reports from Kaua‘i Police Department show five good Samaritans entered the water in an attempt to assist the swimmer, later identified as Mathew Tusitala.

It was a Kaua‘i Ocean Safety Bureau lifeguard, however, who was working at Lydgate Tower at the time who ultimately swam out and brought Tusitala to shore.

But the 30-year-old swimmer was already unresponsive by the time he was brough back to shore by the lifeguard.

Emergency personnel performed high-performance cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, and used a LUCAS (Lund University Cardiopulmonary Assist System) Device, a mechanical chest compression system that provides continuous, high-quality, and consistent chest compressions, before transferring Tusitala to Wilcox Medical Center in Līhuʻe.

He was pronounced dead at the hospital despite continued life-saving efforts.

An autopsy is pending to determine Tusitala’s exact cause of death. Foul play is not suspected.

The five good Samaritans who tried to help Tusitala became fatigued from struggling against the current and were brought to shore without injury by Ocean Safety Bureau personnel with the East Rove Ski Patrol.

Additional responding agencies included Kaua‘i Fire Department personnel with Kapa‘a Fire Station, the on-duty Kaua‘i Fire Department battalion chief, American Medical Response and Kaua‘i Police Department.