Beach erosion reveals scattered bones at Mokuleia

MOKULEIA,OAHU (HawaiiNewsNow) - A woman's fishing trip at Mokuleia Beach turned into a grisly discovery.

Two weeks ago, Waialua resident Cheryl Oga said she was shocked to find skeletal remains scattered along the shoreline.

"There's not enough sand to build up the beach so probably the rain and waves caused the erosion and that's how the bones came out from underneath," Oga said.

Oga believes the remains have been exposed for a while.

"A skull, arm bones and a spine," she said. "I was wondering what if it was a teenager. The skull looked kind of small."

Officials at nearby YMCA Camp Erdman said they were first alerted about the bones by another beachgoer on November 3rd.

Executive Director Ron Okimoto said HPD and DLNR came out, placed a pink marker flag near the site, and left.

"The representative told me they'd be back and we're still waiting for them to come back," said Okimoto.

Okimoto is worried something may happen to the bones if they're not taken care of soon. "You can see the erosion is getting worse so hopefully they come out soon and remove them and get them to a safe place," he said.

Hawaii News Now contacted city and state officials about the discovery and asked why it's taking so long for the bones to be removed.

DLNR responded, only stating that the "State historic preservation division is aware of the situation, and is working with the appropriate state agencies, Camp Erdman staff, and community to address it."