Gabriel Gonsalves washed down equipment yesterday aboard his boat, the Carol Jo, at Haleiwa Boat Harbor. He and other fisherman helped search for Roy Takatsuki of Kauai, who went missing during the Hanapa‘a Jackpot Fishing Tournament.
Kauai man missing
after fishing tourneyRoy Takatsuki's boat is found
without him off Kauai hours after
he departed from Haleiwa Harbor
The Coast Guard was to resume the search today for a fisherman whose 18-foot fishing boat was found idling off Kauai yesterday with no one aboard.
Roy Takatsuki, 57, is the second Hawaii fisherman reported missing in the last two weeks.
Roy Takatsuki.
Wahiawa police said he left Oahu's Haleiwa Harbor on Friday and checked in about 6 a.m. with officials of the North Shore Hanapa'a Jackpot Fishing Tournament, saying he planned to fish near a buoy six miles off Barbers Point.
He later called a friend saying his outrigger broke, police said. When he failed to check back at the Haleiwa base by 6 p.m., the Coast Guard launched a search.
A Coast Guard C-130 Hercules airplane and an HH-65 Dolphin helicopter from the Air Station Barbers Point, a Honolulu Fire Department helicopter and fishing friends from the tournament searched for the missing man yesterday.
Last night, a Coast Guard plane spotted a white object about 14 miles off Kaena Point. A Coast Guard Cutter was sent to try and locate it and determine if it belonged to Takatsuki.
His Boston Whaler, named Beverley, was discovered by two recreational fishermen about 10:45 a.m. yesterday off Kauai's North Shore.
The fishermen discovered Takatsuki's cell phone and redialed the last number Takatsuki had called, putting the fisherman in touch with Takatsuki's friend Glen Kaneshiro.
"I thought I was dreaming," Kaneshiro said. "I thought Roy was calling me."
But then Kaneshiro learned Takatsuki wasn't aboard the boat.
Brad Titus answered Takatsuki's cell phone on the missing boat shortly after he and Rod Thompson discovered it about 10 miles northeast of Kauai.
He said they were fishing when they spotted the boat and "noticed there wasn't anybody on it ... Everything's here except for him. It is still in gear, idling."They called the Coast Guard and the Beverly was towed to Kauai's Anini Beach while the search continued for Takatsuki.
On June 19, the Coast Guard called off the search for Richard Shiroma, 61, who has been missing since his 23-foot fishing boat, Bingo Too, was found empty after running aground near the Turtle Bay Resort.
The boat was found with its engine running and a marlin tied to the back on June 16.
Friends and associates of Takatsuki, immediate past president of the Contractors' Association of Kauai, said he was an experienced fisherman who participated many years in the Hanapa'a Jackpot Fishing Tournament.
Ron Hill, vice president of the North Shore Hanapa'a Club, said Takatsuki won a prize last year for the biggest tuna caught on one of the three days.
Takatsuki normally leaves Kauai around Father's Day to join the tournament, said Karen Taketa, executive director of the Contractors' Association of Kauai.
"We were all expressing concern because Roy does this every year. He goes alone on his little boat. We were all holding our breath that he gets there and gets back."
Troy Martin, who manages Martin Steel Constructors on Kauai, and also does work for Takatsuki, said they were friendly competitors in fishing tournaments.
Martin, a member of the Port Allen Fishing Club, said Takatsuki was a longtime participant of its annual fishing derby, coming up next month.
He said he was told that Takatsuki's boat was running and on auto pilot when it was found, which indicates "he probably was dealing with fish."
He said it was strange that Takatsuki was alone on the boat, which is small, especially for the channel between Kauai and Oahu, "but he's made that crossing many times."
If something happened to the fisherman Friday afternoon, Martin said, the boat could have drifted to Kauai by yesterday morning idling, with the wind behind it. "Being in gear, it would just keep going. It maintains a constant course."
Taketa said Takatsuki, single with an adult son on the mainland, and an elderly mother, has "a tremendously big heart. He is a very giving person and talented craftsperson.
"Contractors have reputations of how well they are able to do jobs and solve problems. He's a good problem-solver. ... He does a lot of work for older people who need homes to be retrofitted to be accessible.
"He loved doing work for seniors in our community. ... He's a really wonderful person."
The Kauai Business Report, published by Peter and Jane McClaran, featured Takatsuki in 1996 when he bought a flower shop in Kapaa called "A Romantic Rose."
Jane McClaran said he bought the business partly to ensure employment for six friends who had been working there.
"That was typical for him," she said. "He was always a big-hearted gentleman."
The Associated Press and reporter Mary Vorsino contributed to this story.
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On the scoreboard of the Hanapa‘a Jackpot Fishing Tournament yesterday, a yellow ribbon was placed next to the name of the missing man’s boat.
Missing fishermen cast
somber mood on tourney
This year's North Shore Hanapa'a Tournament started and ended with a prayer for missing fishermen.
Last night, at what was supposed to be a celebratory banquet, the prayer was for Kauai resident Roy Takatsuki, a fellow participant in the tournament who has been missing since Friday when he failed to return to Haleiwa Harbor.
On Wednesday when the tournament began, the fishermen paused to remember 61-year-old Richard Shiroma, whose boat ran aground without him, a marlin still tied to its stern, on June 16.
"Nobody likes to see a fellow fisherman go down," said Ron Hall, vice president of the North Shore Hanapa'a Club. "They are brothers of the sea."
The awards banquet at the end of the tournament is usually filled with music, stories and laughter.
Music from the Kua'aina Plantation band echoed through the Haleiwa Boat Harbor last night, but many found it hard to celebrate without Takatsuki.
"We have to go to the banquet for the sake of Roy," said Gabriel Gonsalves, 54, a fellow fisherman. "He would have wanted this."
"What was supposed to be a festive day is a day of concern and hope for a miracle," said Paul K. Sensano, Haleiwa harbor master.
Takatsuki hadn't missed a banquet in 10 years, said his longtime girlfriend Beverley Pang, who flew in from Kauai to be closer to the search.
"He looked forward to the tournament every year," Pang said. "He loves challenges and adventures.
"It was devastating. It didn't register at first. It takes a couple hours before everything falls into place."
Takatsuki's 18-foot Boston Whaler, the Beverley, is named after Pang.
About 20 tournament participants and friends took their boats out searching for Takatsuki all day yesterday, covering over 140 miles, with some going as far as Kauai, where Takatsuki's boat was found.
Pang said she was grateful for all of Takatsuki's friends and colleagues who were out looking for him yesterday.
"We'll keep looking until they tell us to stop," said fisherman Richard Beebe, who also plans to search for Takatsuki today.
Takatsuki was a respected man among other fisherman because he would sail to and from Kauai just for the annual tournament.
"He was loved and treasured by all of us here," said fisherman Al Bento. "Everyone's on a down mode."
