The Army will take its lifeguards off a stretch of beach fronting Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki to cut costs, starting Oct. 1.

The decision could leave about a third of a mile of the world-famous beach with no lifeguards on-site — unless the city decides to staff the area.

Yesterday, city officials could not say if they were going to put lifeguards in the two stations on Fort DeRussy Beach. But officials stressed that city lifeguards already patrol the area frequently on Jet Skis and would respond to any emergencies on the beach.

Still, Army lifeguards who man the beach said the Hale Koa decision would put swimmers at risk.

"We've saved thousands of lives down there," said Bill Kearsley, who has been a lifeguard on the beach for 15 years. "This is jeopardizing the health and safety of our soldiers and our families."

Kearsley, the UNITE Local 5 union representative for the lifeguards, added that the beach has several surf breaks and that it's often packed during the summer months.

The Army has provided lifeguards for Fort DeRussy Beach in front of the Hale Koa for the past 50 years.

Hale Koa General Manager John Jefferis said the hotel has 16 full-, part- and flexible-time lifeguards, about half of whom are usually assigned to the beach. The rest are stationed at the hotel's pool. At any one time during the day, three lifeguards are on the beach. The nearest lifeguard stations to those at the Hale Koa are at Magic Island and fronting Duke's Restaurant.

Jefferis said putting lifeguards on the beach costs about $180,000 a year. The decision was made to cut the service after the hotel evaluated its operations and determined its lifeguards on the beach were not properly trained for open-ocean rescues, he said. Jefferis estimated that upgrading the services would have cost the hotel about $245,000 a year.

Replacing towers, adding equipment and adding staff training would cost another $250,000.

"Either we're going to do it right or we're not going to do it at all," Jefferis said.

Jefferis added that only about 10 percent of rescues or assists its lifeguards make are for Hale Koa guests.

No lifeguards were laid off in the decision. Instead, all Army-provided lifeguards will be assigned to the Hale Koa pool.

The hotel also said it would put up signs to alert beachgoers that lifeguards are no longer on the beach.

Jefferis said the city was notified a few days ago of the decision to take the lifeguards off the beach.

The decision comes as the hotel is seeing declines in its revenues, though its overall occupancy rate is significantly higher than other Waikiki hotels.

The hotel, which is open only to military ID holders and authorized guests, is supported by user revenues. The 817-room hotel has a 97 percent occupancy rate, Jefferis said, but "we are seeing a little softness as we move into the fall and our food and beverage is off much like Waikiki, probably 25 percent, so we're having to watch nickels and dimes."