Kipu Falls on Kauai is praised in many travel books and online media as a great place to cool off. The 20-foot waterfall cascades down a cliff and into a small pool. Even rope swings have been installed to double the fun and a ladder to climb back on land. Jumping into the green-blue water and playing under the waterfall may seem like a great idea. However, what many visitors don’t know is that Kipu Falls has claimed lives in the past, five visitors in the last five years to be precise. The latest death occurred just recently, on June 26, when a male visitor from California jumped into the pool and when trying to swim back to land went under water and never resurfaced.

Other people have suffered serious injuries, including a teenage girl who was paralyzed after leaping from the cliff into the pool. Chest injuries, broken bones, rope burns and perforated ear drums are also common injuries here. According to the Kauai Fire Department, rescue crews were sent to the waterfall 10 times last year and twice so far this year.

There are many speculations why healthy people who are able to swim would drown in such a small pool so quickly. Some say there could be strong underwater currents that suck people down. Others say that maybe an angry mo’o, a Hawaiian water spirit lizard, lives in the pool. Experts have analyzed the currents in the pool, but so far couldn’t find any logical explanation.

The thing about Kipu Falls is that people shouldn’t be there in the first place. Not only is it a dangerous place to swim, but the waterfall is surrounded by private land, so every person who goes there is trespassing. The trail to the waterfall crosses land that is owned by Grove Farm. According to the owner, it is a real dilemma on what to do about this issue with people trespassing and then getting hurt or killed.

Blocking access to the trail would be an expensive undertaking since the company is small and has limited resources. Furthermore, a fence could break and the company could then be held responsible for not maintaining the barrier. Should they decide to post warning signs, the company would acknowledge the hazards of the waterfall and thus exposing itself to liability. For these reasons nothing has been done yet and the daily stream of unknowing visitors looking for this “swimming hole extraordinaire” continues.