By Hawaii 24/7 Staff

Fire/rescue units responded to a 3:02 p.m. alarm Tuesday (May 7) to the lava fields near the Kalapana lava viewing area in Puna for a lost hiker in distress.

A friend of the hiker told rescue crews they had been hiking all day and his 56-year-old friend was in physical distress out on the lava field, was having trouble walking and later could not be found.

Firefighters conducted a search with ground crews and Chopper One near Kalapana Gardens Subdivision. The man was located and airlifted via helicopter to an awaiting medic unit. The man was determined to have died.

The cause of the man’s death is under investigation and the case is being handed by the police.