Tourists in Hawaii Drove Directly Into a Harbor, Just Like on 'The Office'
A rather unfortunate real-life GPS fail that probably didn't feel funny for the people it happened to.
They say that sometimes art imitates life. In a recent moment immortalized by a cell phone camera, life imitates art (The Office). Onlookers observed as two tourists in Hawai'i drove their car straight into a harbor, after reportedly following GPS directions that led them astray.
On April 29, two women were in a vehicle that went directly into the Honokohau Small Boat Harbor in Kailua-Kona, WSAZ News reported. Fortunately, both people in the vehicle were able to exit the car unharmed, though bystanders did enter the water to help the driver exit the vehicle.
"I was just sitting there trying to seek shelter from the rain, and then the next thing, I saw a car drive directly past our boat straight into the harbor at a pretty decent speed," Christie Hutchinson told the Washington Post in an interview. "It was so confidently done, they didn't have a look of panic on their face. They were still smiling."
The Dodge Caravan remained sitting in the water, after attempts to prevent the vehicle from sinking failed. Later, a towing crew removed the vehicle. Hutchinson told Insider that the women in the vehicle had stated that they were on the way to a manta ray tour before the incident.
If you've ever seen The Office, this incident may feel hauntingly familiar. On the "Dunder Mifflin Infinity" episode of the show, Steve Carrell's Michael drives himself and Dwight right into Lake Scranton, after misinterpreting the vehicle's GPS directions. It's still unclear why such a similar scenario occurred with the two tourists in Hawai'i, but it does go to show that life can and often does outpace the absurdity of fiction.
"There are manta companies directly on either side of the ramp and I can see how such a mistake could happen in heavy rain perhaps," Hutchinson posited to Insider.
That certainly seems a bit more reasonable than what sent Michael and Dwight to (temporarily) swim with the fishes. Samantha Tavares, from Hawaii's Department of Transportation, told the Post some advice for future GPS users: "If you see a body of water, don't drive towards it."
I can't lie, that advice is pretty funny.