The number of drownings in Hawai'i has risen for the second year in a row, and with summer waves luring thousands to Island beaches, lifeguards want swimmers to be careful.

Last year, 77 drownings occurred statewide, up from 71 in 2004, which previously was a 15-year high. Figures from the first half of 2006 are not yet available, said Dan Galanis, state epidemiologist with the Department of Health's Injury Prevention and Control Program.

Drownings over the past seven years were split at about half between residents and nonresidents, Galanis said.

"It definitely points to a lack of awareness," he said. "Most people would agree we need to do more education."

This month there have been five confirmed drownings in the state — three on the Big Island, two on O'ahu.

Officials say raising awareness about ocean dangers is key. Ideas range from establishing a beach rating system — similar to those used on ski slopes — to erecting solar emergency phones at remote locations, to installing flotation/rescue equipment at some areas, to posting additional signs, to airing safety videos in hotel rooms and on in-bound flights, said Ralph Goto, administrator of Honolulu's Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services Division.

Another effort that could reduce the number of drownings, at least on O'ahu: The city ocean safety division has been given funding for 10 new full-time positions and 10 full-time equivalent positions — or about 55 part-time lifeguards — for the fiscal year beginning July 1, Goto said.

There are 143 full-time lifeguards and 64 part-time lifeguards on the city payroll patrolling 19 beaches. There has not been a significant increase in lifeguards for about five years, Goto said.

PERILOUS DESTINATIONS

Of particular concern to some is the issue of Internet and travel guides that direct visitors, who are often inexperienced swimmers, to remote beaches, cliffs and dive spots that may not have lifeguards.

Nowhere on O'ahu are the conditions more dangerous than along the cliffs at Maunalua Bay in Hawai'i Kai, said John Clark, author and former Honolulu firefighter. Despite warning signs and occasional patrols by lifeguards on personal watercraft when conditions become particularly dangerous, drownings and rescues are a regular occurrence at two popular cliff-diving places: Spitting Caves and China Walls.

"It's the sea cliffs that are attractive," Clark said. "It's cliff jumping, really. There's nowhere else on the island that you can do it. Now and then a surfer will get hurt by being slammed into the wall, but the sites are known as a jumping site."

At the Koko Head sea cliffs, jumpers hike down a steep path between homes to reach the rocky coastline of Spitting Caves. There, they jump 100 feet into a stream of ocean water that spits out of a lava tube when waves crash into the cliff. The jumpers not only have to time their leap just right, but also must propel themselves out and away from the rocky cliff, said Lifeguard Capt. Kevin Allen.

"We have responded here when people haven't made it to the water," Allen said. "As a place ... it's beautiful, but it can get really rough out here. When it's rough, the chances of a rescue officer seeing you is very small."

Once in the water, the jumpers must swim to slippery lava ledges as the way back to land, he said. Sometimes the surf can knock swimmers back into the water where they can get scraped and panic, Allen said.

During periods of high surf, the Koko Head sea cliffs are more dangerous than the legendary shorebreak at Waimea Bay, Clark said.

"First, the area is unguarded (by lifeguards). And second, when someone gets swept in, he or she ends up at the base of a sea cliff and not at the edge of a sand beach. That reduces of his or her chances of surviving considerably," he said.

CAUGHT BY SURPRISE

Being in the ocean can be scary, even for seasoned swimmers like Nancy Goltry. She was recently out at the Three Tables area, a popular scuba and snorkeling spot on the North Shore, when she got stuck in a rip current that kept her from reaching shore, no matter how hard she tried to swim.

The Mililani resident, who was snorkeling while her husband was scuba diving, was brought to shore safely by a member of a group of surfers who routinely pull struggling swimmers out of the water. Goltry was among six people rescued by the group last weekend.

"There are no lifeguards at that beach," she said. "No warning signs were posted at this beach.

"I was very, very frightened. I've never been in that situation before. Lucky for me that he (the man who helped her back to shore) was there."

On the other side of the island there has been an average of three fatalities a year over the past five years, according to a report prepared last August by lifeguards, emergency medical services and firefighters who are part of the Portlock Task Force.

Even when there are lifeguards, there is no assurance that swimmers are safe.

In 2002, a record 10 drownings occurred at Hanauma Bay, where lifeguards are on duty. In some cases, the drownings occurred near shore. To help make visitors more aware of the potential dangers, the city revamped a required video outlining the natural features of the bay to include safety tips and warnings and installed an additional lifeguard tower.

MARKING SITE OF DEATH

An effort under way is the construction of obelisks resembling miniature Washington Monuments that are placed along shorelines where people have died. Obelisks are commonly used by Japanese fishermen, who first erected them in the 1930s.

The most recent was erected at China Walls along the Koko Head sea cliffs, and officials plan to put others at Halona Blow Hole, Spitting Caves and Lana'i Lookout.

"We can post signs, but we can't make people read them," said Ron Bregman, assistant administrator of the city's Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services Division. "People need to know that when they go in the water, particularly isolated places, it will take time for us to respond to them in an emergency."

Education is the key to getting the word out to both tourists and residents, Goto said. Hawaiian Airlines, for example, shows an ocean-safety video on its in-bound flights, he said.

Goto hopes that more videos could be made for all the airline companies coming to Hawai'i. The more people know about the ocean conditions, the more lives can be saved, he said.

"The answer could be more guards and signs, but really it involves a lot of education and getting specific information out to people," Goto said. "It's everyone's responsibility, from the dive guides, to the concierge at the hotels, to the tour drivers in the excursion vans.

"We all need to play an active role. We can't just depend on the lifeguards to protect people."

Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com.