Written by Brooks Baehr - bbaehr@kgmb9.com

April 28, 2009 11:17 PM

A Hawaii Kai man was killed while trying to perform a daring stunt off the back of a parasail boat in Maunalua Bay Tuesday afternoon. Cole Ciliax, 24, worked for SeaBreeze Watersports. The company owner told KGMB9 Ciliax made a "bad decision" that led to his death.

"What happened is he wanted to try and do a zip line. So he actually grabbed onto another piece of rope and thought it would be an exciting event to come down the line from the parasail. And what had happened is the rope that he was holding must have worn through. And unfortunately that is what led to the event," said Jeff Krantz.

Krantz said there was a customer rigged to the parasail when Ciliax attempted the zip line descent. He estimates Ciliax fell about 60 feet. He hit the water and vanished.

Lifeguards helped retrieve his body from 20 to 30 feet of water. He was taken to an Oahu hospital where he was pronounced dead.

As the sunset Tuesday seven or eight of Ciliax's co-workers motored out to the spot where their friend died. "We felt it would be the right thing for us to come and pay our respects," Krantz said.

"We were just so blessed to have had him here with us. He was just a great employee and a great kid," said Kathy Takahashi, General Manager at SeaBreese Watersports.

"He was a special kid and we're really going to miss him around here," added Courtney Krantz.

People who worked with Ciliax say he moved to Hawaii from Las Vegas a little less than two years ago. His parents live on the mainland.

The Coast Guard is investigating the accident.

Submitted on 04/29/2009

Submitted by: Anonymous
Reference: http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/16784/40/

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Bruce said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
I've been ziplining myself Between the full body harness, safety helmet, gloves, and redundant safety cables I felt VERY safe. Even though I've only done this once (so far) I would NEVER consider for even a moment simply using a piece of rope to make such an attempt. Not only would holding onto both ends of the rope be fairly difficult but the friction of the rope on the para-sail cable would be tremendous. This guy obviously didn't consider the dangers of such a stunt at all. Well worth a DA as far as I'm concerned. Thanks!

Candi said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
How does someone kill themselves in a sport with an excellent safety record and more precautions than airport security!?! Thanks!

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