The series was originally developed for HBO Max under the title Ke Nui Road, conceived as a junior lifeguard drama by John Wells and Animal Kingdom writer Matt Kester, with HBO Max ordering a pilot in June 2021 that was ultimately not picked up.

After HBO Max passed on the project, Fox gave the retitled series Rescue: HI-Surf a series order on April 28, 2023, with Kester writing the pilot and John Wells set to direct the first two episodes.

Production on the series was delayed indefinitely due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, and filming only officially began after the strikes ended.

The original 2021 cast announced for the HBO Max pilot included Robbie Magasiva, Tessa de Josselin, Andrew Creer, Ethan Rich, George Mason and Kekoa Scott Kekumano, but only Magasiva and Kekumano remained attached when the series moved to Fox.

When the series was revived at Fox, new leads Arielle Kebbel, Adam Demos, Alex Aiono and Zoe Cipres were announced in January 2024 alongside the returning original cast members.

Fox extended the show's episode order to 19 episodes on April 12, 2024, with Daniele Nathanson joining as an additional executive producer.

The series premiered on September 22, 2024, airing after Fox's NFL coverage before settling into its regular Monday-night time slot the following night.

Fox initially planned to air an episode following its Super Bowl LIX coverage in February 2025, but reversed the decision in November 2024, giving that post-Super Bowl slot to The Floor instead; Canadian broadcaster CTV still aired the Rescue: HI-Surf episode in the post-Super Bowl slot as originally planned.

The series received mixed reviews, holding a 50% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 51 out of 100 on Metacritic, before being canceled by Fox after just one season on May 7, 2025.