Crash leaves Waikiki chef in ICU, family uncertain

WAIKIKI, Oahu (KHON2) — A Waikiki chef is on the road to recovery after a frightening moped crash at a tricky intersection.

Alex Shiraishi — a new chef at Skybox Taphouse Waikiki — was in a moped crash on Tuesday, Aug. 19, at the busy split of Kalakaua and Kuhio avenues. His wife rushed to the scene and heard from witnesses that Alex had been side-swiped by a car.

“It’s been very emotional. It was really scary seeing him in pain. It was really scary seeing him not being able to breathe on his own. He’s got nine broken ribs, punctured lungs,” Melissa Shiraishi said.

Alex spent days in intensive care, but is now off of supplemental oxygen, and the father of two is showing signs of improvement.

“They miss their dad. They’re both daddy’s girls. And, you know, they ask about him every day,” she said. “He was in ICU. But it’s only been a couple days now since he’s been back to the normal floor.”

Alex’s medical benefits did not kick in since he had only been working at Skybox for two weeks before the crash. The owner of Skybox has stepped up and hopes that Alex will qualify for coverage.

“He’s, like, texting us too, stuff about recipes and other things. So the guy’s still working and as long as he’s in the hospital, I’m going to continue to pay him because if he’s working all those weeks, then he’s going to end up qualifying for the medical,” said Allen Farinas. “His previous employer hasn’t offered him COBRA. So we’re, we’re kind of in the middle in between what we what are we going to do?”

Farinas said he has been in Waikiki for years, and the area where Kalakaua splits off into Kuhio has always been a trouble spot with drivers making reckless or last-minute decisions.

“When people realize that they’re not, they’re going to Kuhio and not Kalakaua, you can see on the white lines where so many cars are crossing over there,” he said. “I am hyper aware of drivers in this area because this is where most of the stuff happens.”

Click here for more info on supporting the Shiraishi family on Alex’s road to recovery.