Tourist dies after he’s found not breathing on Hawaii hiking trail, officials say

An Illinois man died on a hiking trail in Hawaii after he was found with no pulse, officials said.

Masami Ozawa, 59, was discovered not breathing Sunday, Feb. 27, about a half-mile into a hike in Kauai, county officials said.

Firefighters were notified he became unresponsive on the Sleeping Giant Trail, a 3.4-mile out-and-back trail that’s considered to be a moderate hike. Officials did not say what led to the man becoming unresponsive.

“According to a preliminary report, first responders arrived on scene at approximately 11:35 a.m. and located the hiker at the 0.5-mile marker of the trail,” the county of Kaua’i said in a news release. “The hiker had no pulse, was not breathing, and was being administered CPR by a bystander.”

Rescuers gave the man CPR and oxygen, and flew him to emergency medics waiting at a park.

Ozawa was then rushed to an emergency room where he was pronounced dead.

Family members who were with Ozawa were given grief counseling services, officials said.

It’s unclear where Ozawa was from in Illinois.

This story was originally published March 1, 2022 at 9:45 AM with the headline "Tourist dies after he’s found not breathing on Hawaii hiking trail, officials say."