Tourist presumed dead after sucked into blowhole

The body of a US man is still missing after he was knocked off his feet and fell into a blowhole while on holiday in Hawaii.

David Potts, 44, of San Anselmo, Northern California was enjoying a luxury getaway with his young son and girlfriend of 15 years when tragedy hit last Saturday.

Mr Potts was said to be seen dancing around sprays of water near the blowhole’s opening at Nakalele Point, Maui, when the ocean wave hit and he was sucked in.

It is reported that Mr Potts was briefly swept to the surface but another wave hit causing him to disappear out of sight completely.

This holiday snap shows Mr Potts in the background seconds before the wave’s impact knocked him off his feet and into the blowhole along the island’s rocky coastline.

https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/07/2415.jpgPhoto: AP/Rocco Piganelli

The witness who took the photo, Rocco Piganelli, spoke of the horror: “We all stared for like 30 seconds and then I realised - he's gone. He's down there, I felt like I was going to throw up.”

Another witness claimed that Mr Potts had his back to the ocean when the wave hit very fast.

The search for him was called off on Monday by the local authorities. They fear that the victim may have been washed out to sea or still wedged in the hole.

A Maui police spokesman Wayne Ibarra said rough waters on the northern side of Maui and poor visibility complicated the search. The case has now officially become a missing person report as no body has been recovered.

Tourist presumed dead after sucked into blowhole - Yahoo! News