Hawaiian talent Eli Hanneman suffered a serious accident at Pipe

He suffered a concussion from hitting the reef, injured his pancreas from allegedly hitting it with his board, and has cuts all over his body; “I'm just happy to be alive,” he wrote on his Instagram.

January 28, 2022

The young and talented Hawaiian surfer, Eli Hanneman, narrowly saved his life last Tuesday in Pipe, after jumping off his board inside a closed tube and hitting the reef and also his board, he explained on his Instagram.

In a clip posted by coach and former pro Jim Hogan, Hanneman is seen jumping with control but then drifting off course and paddling automatically toward shore, helped by fellow pro Brodi Sale before lifeguards assisted him.

After being treated at the hospital, Hanneman ended up with eight staples in the back of his head, six stitches in his chinstrap, cuts all over his body and what he considers worst was that he suffered a concussion. “But the most significant damage was done by my board. Underwater it must have hit me hard in the upper abdomen, causing a laceration in my pancreas,” he said.

They were able to operate on him through the stomach without having to perform major surgery.

“God is good!” he exclaimed in the message in which he thanked Brodi and the lifeguards. “I don’t remember much of what happened (…) I’m pretty sedated with drugs right now so I may sound fried, but I’m just happy to be alive,” he added.