Police evacuate popular beach to investigate possible bomb

HANAUMA BAY, Hawaii (AP) — Honolulu police say a popular beach has been evacuated as officers and bomb squad officials respond to the discovery of what could be a bomb, Hawaii News Now reports.

The news service says that hundreds were asked to leave Hanauma Bay beach after a suspicious item was found around 10:40 a.m.

Police tell Hawaii News Now the item is a canister that washed ashore. The news service says a lifeguard found it during safety training and alerted authorities.

Hanauma Bay, nestled inside a breeched volcanic cone on the southeastern shore of Oahu, has some of the state’s calmest waters, most pristine beaches and world-renowned snorkeling over coral reefs that teem with colorful fish.

In 2016, for the second year in a row, the beach was selected as the best beach in America by a Florida professor — Stephen Leatherman, also known as Dr. Beach — who’s made a career ranking and studying beaches around the country.