Posted on: Thursday, June 27, 2002

Day turned deadly when Jet Ski drifted off

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

Sun Ho Ham and his friend Kyung Min Lee hopped on Ham's Jet Ski for an afternoon of leisure off of Hawai'i Kai Tuesday afternoon. But the trip turned tragic when the two were separated from the Jet Ski and unable to make it back to the craft.

The Coast Guard found Ham's body a mile off Paiko peninsula about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. The city medical examiner yesterday said Ham, 31, drowned.

Rescue crews at first were unable to find Lee and the fire department suspended its search at 8:10 p.m. because of darkness.

The Coast Guard had two boats patrolling the area, with no luck.

Then, at about 10:45 — five hours after Ham's abandoned Jet Ski was found two miles off Maunalua Bay — three fishermen heard the faint sound of a whistle coming from the ocean. They shined their flashlights into the darkness, and the whistling became louder and more frequent.

The sounds were coming from Lee, who had been floating for about seven hours, unable to make it to shore. Lee, 30, had a whistle attached to a bracelet, said fire spokesman Capt. Richard Soo.

The fishermen used a cellular phone to call 911. Shortly before midnight, Lee, who was found 30 yards offshore south of Koko Head, was hoisted onto a Coast Guard helicopter.

She was taken to The Queen's Medical Center suffering from hypothermia and was in guarded condition yesterday.

Police homicide Detective Ted Coons interviewed Lee yesterday in her hospital room.

She told him that Ham offered to teach her how to ride a Jet Ski and they had stopped to snorkel off Hawai'i Kai.

Lee said she dropped her swim mask and that's when the problems began.

"(Ham) was going to dive down and get it," Coons said. "He had swam to her while she was snorkeling and the Jet Ski apparently drifted away. By the time he could swim back he succumbed to the ocean."

Ham apparently removed his life vest before diving for the mask and he was not tethered to the Jet Ski, Coons said.

The life vest, a cellular phone and other items were found on the abandoned Jet Ski by a parasailing company about 5 p.m.

Although Ham's relatives said he was a strong swimmer, "the current had carried (the Jet Ski) farther than he could swim," Coons said. Lee told Coons that she does not know how to swim.

Ham was a Salt Lake resident and self-employed, Coons said. He would not provide information on Lee or her relationship with Ham.

Foul play is not suspected and the case has been classified as an unattended death.

Derek Lau, 27, was the fisherman who called for help after hearing the whistling. Lau, a graduate student at Chaminade University, was fishing with friends Matt and Mark Mitsui at a spot called "Low Point" between Hanauma Bay and China Walls.

The three had seen the emergency vehicles and search crews on their way to their fishing spot, but Lau said they did not know that a woman was missing. But once they heard the whistle, Lau said, they knew someone needed help.

"You hear a whistle coming from the ocean, but you don't see anything, common sense will tell you something's in the water," Lau said. "I guess she was right in front of us because the whistle was pretty strong."

Lau said the wind was blowing hard and the 1- to 3-foot waves were choppy. He said they could not see or hear Lee, but they knew she saw them.

"When we all blasted our lights in the water, she started really whaling on the whistle," Lau said. He added that he believes Lee first spotted him when he flashed his light on and off to attract fish.

Lau and his friends normally don't fish on a weekday, but he said he wanted to get in as much fishing as he could before he has shoulder surgery next month.

He said he was glad they chose that night to hike to their favorite spot.

"I'm glad we heard her," Lau said. "I'm glad she had the whistle because that's what saved her life. And she was lucky enough to pass by us."