by Hector Trujillo / Times of San Diego / June 24, 2025
Point Loma Nazarene student Dakota Briley is in a coma and fighting for his life after being hit by a car while he was on the side of a road on June 14 in Hawaii.
Dakota Briley, the 20-year-old son of surfing icon Shawn Briley, is a passionate surfer and member of the Point Loma Nazarene surf team.
He was reportedly unloading surfboards on the North Shore of Oahu near Chun’s Beach when the collision occurred. He is now in an intensive care unit in Honolulu.
“He’s still going through multiple surgeries after being brought to the hospital in critical condition,” said his sister Erin Lau. “Dakota has had several surgeries to stabilize his lower body and repair his lungs.”
Among the other list of injuries are fractures to both legs, pelvis, and skull, along with other extensive critical injuries. One of Briley’s most recent surgeries took place on June 17 and lasted nearly eight hours as surgeons tried to rebuild part of his vertebrae.
“The medical staff has been incredible while working to repair him,” Lau added. “For now, he’s resting until his body is ready for the next surgery. I think we’re just taking it one day at a time. The optimism we have is the fact that he’s young and strong.”
Briley is one of four siblings. He came home for the summer between semesters and was preparing for his junior year when the tragedy struck.
“Right now we are asking people to put out prayers and good energy toward the healing of his spinal cord along with the fractures to his skull that will take time to heal,” Lau said.
“My family is very devoted and has a deep faith in God. The church community has been putting out a lot of prayers for him, and that has given my family strength. Our priority is asking people to keep putting good prayers, energy, and any love toward Dakota and his healing.”
A GoFundMe page for Briley and his family through the journey toward recovery can be found here.
This is just terrible…makes you stop and realize what’s really important. Been thinking about this on and off all day.
/s/ Chris Kennedy
And just how easy it is to have your life totally trashed in one moment by someone not paying attention while driving a 4,000 pound car down Kam Hwy…
This has been in the Hawai’i news for a week; my old surf partner who lives/surfs on Windward Side sent it to me. The kid was squashed between two vehicles and suffered massive injuries. Even walking again will be…problematic, much less surfing ever again.
He was a serious charger at North Shore spots, too, keeping up his father’s legacy. A 20 yr old was driving the other vehicle.
But if you’ve ever driven Kam Hwy that is the only one that circles O’ahu, it’s just a two-lane death trap. And like everywhere, people drive way too fast, talk on their cell phones constantly, and pass people going slower in the worst possible spots….
I get to hear about the latest wreck report along with how good the surf is… They don’t drive much because it has become far more crowded in the last 30+ years…and his wife is local and says it’s so much worse than when she was growing up back in the 50s & 60s though there has always been a lot of wrecks on Kam Hwy…
Last time I drove it, in 1998 on a visit to their place next to Crouching Lion, I nearly had a head-on when one of those impatient drivers started to pass on a blind curve and came around the corner in my face. Leaves one shaking from the instant adrenaline rush and spurt of fear…
And you only hear about this happening if the person is somewhat famous because it’s so common.
I wish him healing as best as his body can do.
sealintheSelkirks