"It's never easy for us to call off a search," said Coast Guard petty officer Brooksann Anderson. "But we have tried every avenue of discovery that we can. Our hopes and prayers are with his family and friends."

Takatsuki was the second fisherman to disappear from his boat while fishing alone off O'ahu in two weeks. Richard Shiroma, 60, of Kane'ohe disappeared June 16 while fishing near La'ie; his empty boat ran aground at Turtle Bay with the motor running and a marlin lashed to the side.

Coast Guard officials remind boaters and fisherman to be extra careful on the water as the summer season kicks into high gear.

Both of the fishermen who disappeared this month were experienced boaters who often fished alone in Hawaiian waters, according to their friends and family. But according to Bobby Alipio, a fishermen who knew Shiroma through the 'Aiea Boat Club and spent two days searching for him, even the most seasoned fishermen should be careful of fishing alone.

"Nowadays a lot of people go out fishing alone, but it can be dangerous," said Alipio, 35, of Pearl City. "One of my friends fell off his boat once. He was holding on to the railing and his hands slipped — luckily there was someone else there," he said. "Most of the ones I know who got knocked off were never recovered." Alipio said he knew at least five people who were lost at sea while fishing.

"I never do go by myself. Even if the water is flat I don't go by myself ... but sometimes it's hard to find a crew, sometimes you can't find someone who can get off work or who's retired," he said.

Lt. Cmdr. Todd Offutt of the Coast Guard said many experienced boaters tend to underestimate the risks at sea, particularly in Hawa'i.

"People grow up around the water here and get very comfortable with it," Offutt said. "But it's not like on a coast where you have a 50-50 chance of making it back. Once you get away from an island, there's 360 degrees you can go and almost every way you go is away from land."

Offutt said there are several precautions boaters can take to save themselves if an accident does happen.

"It is quite common that people fish alone," he said. "But you need to tell someone where you're going — the who, what, where, when and why. The Coast Guard does a lot of search-and- rescues for people who were never lost, they just didn't tell someone where they were going to be."

Offutt also stressed the importance of having the proper gear on board — lifejackets and a tracking device like a GPS (Global Positioning System) or EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radiobeacon).

"A personal EPIRB can be worn like a watch," Offutt said. "It tells us exactly where a person is. So if you fall off a boat, it takes the search out of search and rescue.

"But all of these things are only good if you use them," Offutt said. "Takatsuki was known to have two life jackets aboard at all times, and there were two lifejackets aboard when his empty boat was found."

Alipio said most fishermen he knows, including himself, don't wear a tether or life jackets because they get in the way.

"No one wants to wear them," said Anderson of the Coast Guard. "But life jackets save lives. There are newer, sleeker, lightweight models out there," she said.

Alipio said Shiroma's disappearance was a reality check to some fishermen who went out and bought inflatable life vests right away. "I said, 'Sheez, what took you guys so long?' " he said. "Maybe it woke them up."