NEWS FLASH - BREAKING NEWS FROM MAUI COUNTY

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NEW FOR 2010: Maui TV News Breaking News stories are now being archived. Click here to scan through all the Breaking News items for 2010.

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WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii-Mayor Charmaine Tavares has announced that the County of Maui Office of Economic Development executed a total of $470,000 in grants benefiting Maui Economic Development Board, Inc., the East Maui Taro Festival and Ahupua`a O Molokai.

The Maui Economic Development Board, Inc. received $450,000 for business and workforce development to help diversify the county’s economic base in the areas of technology, health, information systems and renewable energy.

MEDB-led programs now serve 10,000 students, educators and employers per year statewide, with 5,500 in Maui County; its Professional Development for Teachers (DOE PD credentialed) program provided training for 240 teachers in 2009 in GIS/GPS technologies in the newly launched MEDB GeoTech Hawaii initiative. Another 150 teachers and coaches were trained in robotics, 50 teachers trained in inquiry-based teaching methods for science and technology, and 40 teachers trained in a new Island Energy renewable energy curriculum aligned with DOE standards from 5th grade to 12th grade. In the agriculture sector, an Educate the Educator training reached 60 teachers on Maui. Other MEDB programs include research and development activities such as information systems, supercomputing, optics, agritech and renewable energy. MEDB recruits and prepares residents for the skills needed for these sectors grounded in science, technology, engineering and math through such innovative programs as Project EAST, which has served 4,400 students in all Maui County public high schools.

The East Maui Taro Festival received $15,000 that was used to pay for expenses associated with the 18th annual East Maui Tare Festival held earlier this year in Hana.

Ahupua`a O Molokai received $5,000 in funds to help distribute information, conduct membership drives, provide fundraising for associations and organizations as well as aid in community education.

For more information, contact the County of Maui Office of Economic Development at (808) 270-7710 or www.mauicounty.gov/oed.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 15, 2010 11:45 a.m. HST MPD Promotes Three Officers to Sergeant
Chief Gary Yabuta would like to announce the promotions of Officer Myles Won of the Wailuku Patrol Divison, Office Randy Esperanza of the Vice Narcotics Division, and Officer Nelson Hamilton of Lanai Patrol Division to the rank of Sergeant/ Detective effective June 16, 2010.	Sgt. Randy Esperanza	Sgt. Myles Won	Sgt. Nelson Hamilton
Sergeant Won has been a resident of Maui since 1987 and joined Maui Police Department on January 10, 1995 and began his career as a patrol officer in Lahaina District and transferred to Wailuku Patrol shortly after. This 15-1/2 year veteran was a part of the Department’s Crime Reduction Unit and Field Training Program. He has trained over dozens of recruits as a Field Training Officer for the last nine (9) years. Sergeant Won will be assigned to Lanai Patrol District. Sergeant Randy Esperanza, a 14-1/2 year veteran was born on Oahu and began his police career working in the Wailuku Patrol Division and was assigned to the Molokai District in 1997 as a patrol officer. After serving one year in Molokai, he was assigned to Lahaina Patrol for the next four years where he became a member of the Special Response Team and a Field Training Officer. In 2001 he transferred to the Vice Narcotics Division. Sergeant Esperanza is married and thanks his family for all their support and encouragement. He will be assigned to Molokai Patrol District. Sergeant Nelson Hamilton, 38, born in Portand, Oregon raised on Oahu and is a graduate of Henry J. Kaiser High School. After graduating, he enlisted into the United States Marine Corps and served 6 years in the Marine Corps reserves. He moved to the island of Maui to join the Police Department in 1998. He began his patrol duties in Wailuku Patrol District and in 1999 was assigned to the District of Lanai and took up an interest in Narcotics investigations. He has been the senior officer for majority of the search warrants served on the island of Lanai. Sergeant Hamilton is married with two daughters. He will be assigned to the District of Molokai for one year.
(Report Provided by the Maui County Police Department) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 15, 2010 11:15 a.m. HST

HONOLULU — Lt. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona, Jr., as acting governor, today signed into law, House Bill 2486, which establishes a minimum number of hours of instructional time for Hawai‘i public school students.

“Hawai‘i is the only State in the nation that does not set by statute the minimum number of hours of instructional time a public school student should receive,” said Lt. Governor Aiona. “Our families, principals and teachers deserve a public school system that ensures our students have the tools and classroom time needed to succeed.”

Hawai‘i has the shortest amount of instructional time in the nation – 4 hours and 43 minutes per day. Thirty-two states average 5-and-a-half hours per day of instructional time (990 hours per school year) and 16 states mandate a minimum of 6 hours of instruction per day (1,080 hours per school year).

Under the new law, Act 167, the State Department of Education (DOE) must maximize the amount of instructional time under the current collective bargaining agreement during the 2010 – 2011 school year. With “furlough Fridays” resolved, there are 178 instructional days in the coming school year.

For the 2011 – 2013 school years, all public schools, except charter schools, will be required to have a school year of 180 days of instruction. Elementary schools would be required to offer 915 hours; middle and high schools would have to offer 990 hours of instruction.

In addition, the measure requires for the 2013 – 2015 school years, all schools, except charters, must retain the 180 days and expand instructional time to 1,080 hours for elementary, middle and high schools.

Public charter schools were exempted at the request of the charter school community to respect the autonomy and individuality of charter schools. Some charters already have longer days, or include projects and off-site learning experiences as part of their instruction.

The bill explicitly defines instructional time to exclude lunch, recess or time for the students to pass between classes.

(Report Provided by the Office of Lt. Gov. James R. "Duke" Aiona, Jr.)

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NEWS FLASH - June 15, 2010 7:15 a.m. HST

Kahului Airport has received a new state-of-the-art Explosive Detection System.

The system is an enhanced baggage security screening system capable of detecting explosives, weapons and other contraband materials.

The airport has six explosive detection machines, which the Transportation Security Administration says will have sufficient capacity to handle growth for the next 20 years.

"The passenger baggage check-in experience will be seamless and simple," state Deputy Transportation Director Brian Sekiguchi said last week. "Baggage will enter the security screening area on conveyor belts from the check-in counters and will no longer require passengers to carry their bags to the EDS machines."

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (economic stimulus funding), the TSA gave the state $18.5 million for the system's approximate cost of $24.6 million.

"Along with improving air travel security, the new EDS system will open up lobby space at our airport," state Transportation Director Brennon Morioka said at a dedication ceremony with state and federal officials. "This will help simplify the flight check-in process for our air travelers and help maintain a positive first and last impression of our state that travelers receive when they visit our airports."

The integration of the Explosive Detection System is part of the airport's Terminal Improvements Project. Other changes to the airport include the construction and installation of new baggage conveyor equipment, seven new baggage carousels and a room dedicated to explosive trace detection.

(Report Provided by the Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - June 15, 2010 6:45 a.m. HST

A civil rights group is exploring the possibility of an economic boycott against Hawaii Business Roundtable members who supported a letter from the organization's executive committee urging a governor's veto of House Bill 444, the civil unions measure.

"There is no organized plan for a boycott right now," said Donald Bentz, a spokesman for Equality Hawaii. "That's something that has to be really thought out and determined if that's the best course of action.

Round-table Members
The executive committee members of the Hawaii Business Roundtable as of February:

» David Carey, president and CEO, Outrigger Enterprises
» H. Mitchell D'Olier, president and CEO, Kaneohe Ranch Co.
» Donald G. Horner, president and CEO, First Hawaiian Bank
» Allan Landon, chairman and CEO, Bank of Hawaii
» Constance Lau, president and CEO, Hawaiian Electric Industries
» Dee Jay Mailer, CEO, Kamehameha Schools
» Harry Saunders, president, Castle & Cooke Hawaii
» Nate Smith, president, Oceanic CableVision Inc.
» Arthur A. Ushijima, president and CEO, Queen's Health Systems
» Allen Uyeda, president and CEO, First Insurance Co. of Hawaii

Source:hibusinessroundtable.org

"There are businesses that are supportive (of HB 444) that are part of the round table," he added. "We're basically reaching out to them to ask them to take a stand and go from there."

The round table is a public policy group of senior executives from about 50 top companies that are either based in Hawaii or do significant business in the state.

Gary K. Kai, executive director of the round table, did not return a telephone message seeking comment yesterday.

In a letter dated June 4 and signed by Kai, the round table's 10-member executive committee urged Lingle to veto HB 444 in part because of "the manner in which the legislation was drafted."

The letter does not take a position on civil unions, but takes issue with the language in the bill, including its effective date of Jan. 1, 2010, and the potential for more questions to arise as the legislation is implemented. It suggests the formation of a commission to study the matter and make recommendations for next session.

Alan Spector, legislative affairs co-chairman for Equality Hawaii, said the group has polled several members of the round table and learned some organizations were unaware of the letter to Lingle, adding they were uncertain whether their company was consulted.

Bentz noted that Bank of Hawaii and Hawaiian Airlines have traditionally scored very high on the nondiscrimination "scorecard" kept by the Human Rights Campaign, while DFS U.S. Group Vice President Sharon Weiner was among the supporters listed on ads in support of HB 444 bought by the group Citizens for Equal Rights. All three businesses are round-table members.

"Some of the companies that are round-table members have very progressive polices in place," Bentz said. "They are supportive, and that's why we're trying to contact them before any type of blanket boycott."

Lingle is traveling in Asia and is scheduled to return this week. She has until Monday to notify the Legislature which bills she might veto, but she has until July 6 to make her decision. She previously has said the language in the bill appears to be same-sex marriage by a different name, a concept she opposes.

House Bill 444 would grant the same rights, benefits, protections and responsibilities of spouses in a marriage to partners in a civil union. All couples would be allowed to enter into a civil union, provided they are 18 or older, not related and not married.

Reach B.J. Reyes at bjreyes@starbulletin.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 14, 2010 3:25 p.m. HST

Effective today, the Department of Water Supply will reduce the production at the Olinda Water Treatment Facility (WTF) due to the near-empty conditions of the Upper Kula reservoirs. The 30 million gallon (MG) Waikamoi Reservoir is empty and the 100 MG Kahakapao Reservoir is at 25.9 MG. The Kamole WTF in Haliimaile, the Piiholo WTF in Makawao, and the Po’okela Well in Makawao will provide water for customers in Upper Kula.

The Olinda facility will only produce enough water to provide for customers in the Olinda area. Normal production is approximately 1.3 MGD. Production will be reduced to approximately 0.1 MGD (100,000 gallons per day).

By the end of the week, Upper Kula customers may notice a change in water quality because the water coming from the lower elevations is disinfected with chlorine. The Olinda facility utilizes chloramines for disinfection, which does not have a chlorine smell. Olinda residents will continue to receive water disinfected with chloramines. The water
meets all federal and state water quality standards.

In addition, the Department would like to remind all Upcountry businesses and residents that water levels in the reservoirs are low and customers should use less water to extend the supply through the summer.

“We are still asking customers to reduce water usage by 5%. Daily average usage throughout the year is 7.5 MGD; however, demand for the past two weeks has been 9.2 MGD. This is really high,” said Director of Water Supply Jeffrey Eng. Current water levels are available at www.mauiwater.org.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Department of Water Supply)

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NEWS FLASH - June 14, 2010 3 p.m. HST

The brush fire at Maalaea that started in the late evening of Monday, June 7 has been called extinguished at 12:30 p.m. today by fire officials. The brush fire burned an estimated 6,200 acres. It is believed to be the largest fire to impact the island of Maui. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Mayor Charmaine Tavares offered her thanks to the many that assisted throughout this past week: "We can never say enough to thank our firefighters, police, supporting agencies, businesses, and community organizations for their hard work throughout these past several days as we dealt with such a massive brush fire," said Mayor Tavares.

"Despite the difficulties that the fire imposed on our island, our community did not hesitate to help others in need - something we can all be proud of. I also appreciate the efforts of the public to stay informed and cooperate with emergency management personnel, these efforts are always important in situations affecting public safety."

To view the Maui fire at it's peak, click here.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 14, 2010 2:05 p.m. HST

HONOLULU — Lt. Governor Aiona today signed into law Senate Bill 2897, as acting governor, which strengthens the ignition interlock law in Hawai‘i.

“This measure provides resources to improve our efforts to stop impaired driving and the tragedies that result from drunk driving,” said Lt. Governor Aiona. “Most of the injuries, fatalities and property damage caused by drunk drivers are preventable and we must keep these drivers off of our highways.”

The measure, which takes effect on Jan. 1, 2011, is the third of three laws enacted since 2008 to implement the ignition interlock program to keep drunk drivers off of Hawai‘i’s highways.

In 2008, Governor Lingle signed Act 171 that established the framework for an ignition interlock program in Hawai‘i. That Act created a 26-member Task Force to work out the steps to implement the program.

In 2009, the Governor signed Act 88 that addressed some of the key implementation issues and extended the Task Force for another year. It also gave the State Department of Transportation (DOT) rulemaking authority to operate the program and allowed the department to seek a single vendor to install and maintain the interlock devices.

The latest law updates the previous two measures and makes policy changes. Most notably, this measure eliminates probation for second and third time offenders and instead these convicted offenders will be required to show “proof of compliance” with the interlock law.

Additional highlights of the new law include:
* Creates the offense of tampering with an interlock device or aiding and abetting the circumvention of a device. Those convicted are subject to fines and jail time.
* Makes refusal to submit to a breath, blood or urine test a petty misdemeanor.
* Clarifies definition, including the definition of ignition interlock device, and repeals the definition of highly intoxicated driver.
* Specifies the contents of the notification of revocation of a driver’s license, or vehicle registration including terms for surrendering of a vehicle’s license plates.
* Forbids issuing an ignition interlock system to a person who was arrested and did not hold a valid driver’s license at the time they were driving.

“I applaud our ignition interlock Task Force members, which include county prosecutors, public defenders, public safety officers, transportation officials and highway safety advocates, for the long hours and hard work they put in to make our roads safe,” the Lt. Governor added.

(Report Provided by the Office of Lt. Gov. James R. "Duke" Aiona, Jr.)

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NEWS FLASH - June 14, 2010 7:40 a.m. HST

Melissa Chang, former marketing director for Aloha Tower Marketplace, will have to hunt for medical insurance when her benefits expire in July.

Chang, 44, who was laid off in January 2009, will no longer have subsidized health benefits under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, or Cobra, which allowed her to remain on her previous employer's health plan.

"It's more scary because I don't know how much it's going to cost, and I don't know how much I can afford," said Chang, an independent social media consultant. "For me, I'm just single -- I just fend for myself."

Others like Chang who were laid off toward the beginning of the recession will also lose Cobra coverage in the next few months. There were 42,550 unemployed in Hawaii as of April.

Cobra offers workers who lose their jobs continued health benefits under an employer's group health plan for 18 months (36 months if you're on disability). The only catch is the laid-off employee normally has to pay the full premium.

The average monthly Cobra premium for Hawaii families is $994, according to a report released this month by Families USA, a national organization for health care consumers.

The federal government, as part of the 2009 economic stimulus law, provided help with Cobra payments for people laid off between Sept. 1, 2008, and May 31. The help is in the form of a 65 percent discount for 15 months.

The subsidy brings down the average monthly Cobra premium for Hawaii families to $348, with the subsidy, the study shows.

Without the subsidy, laid-off workers would need more than half of their unemployment benefits to cover health insurance.

A monthly Cobra payment of $994 means 54.8 percent of the average $1,815 monthly unemployment benefits would be consumed by Cobra premiums.

The 65 percent subsidy makes health insurance much more affordable but also adds to the federal budget deficit.

The subsidy ended on June 1. Congress is still debating whether to bring it back.

"There is an irony that a few months after the passage of health reform, the Cobra subsidy would come to an end," said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA. "Health reform will significantly expand health coverage starting in a few years from now, but in the meanwhile more and more people who lose their jobs will lose their health care coverage."

Many Hawaii residents might find themselves in just that position, unable to pay the full premium for health insurance.

Hawaii employers typically pay 100 percent of individual medical insurance premiums, according to Altres Inc., which handles human resources for 500 local businesses.

"It's impossible for somebody who's getting unemployment to take $300 for that (individual coverage) when I've got my mortgage to pay," said Kaimuki resident David Miller, 37, who has been uninsured since being laid off a year ago from his job as staffing and training manager at Marimed Foundation. "It's taking a chance balancing whether I'm going to get hurt or putting food on the table."

But taking the huge risk of going uninsured is never a comfortable option.

Alternatives to Cobra include shopping around with the state's major health plans, including the Hawaii Medical Service Association and Kaiser Permanente.

HMSA's average monthly dues for an individual medical-only "conversion plan" is $328, slightly less than a small business-sponsored preferred provider medical-only plan at about $380.

Conversion plans are for people who were previously covered by an employer-sponsored HMSA plan and convert to an individual plan within 31 days. They automatically receive coverage without having to be screened for pre-existing medical conditions, which can boost insurance premium rates.

Nonconversion individual plans at HMSA range in price depending on pre-existing medical conditions and other risk factors.

Kaiser offers a variety of individual plan options with prices based on age and gender. Prices for young adults start as low as $38 per month for a basic plan that covers annual exams, hospitalization and emergency services to about $108 per month for a more comprehensive plan.

Medicare and the state Medicaid program are options for seniors and people with little to no assets.

For free health insurance under Medicaid's Quest program, a single person can make no more than $12,460 per year, a couple no more than $16,760 and a family no more than $25,360.

Assets can be no more than $2,000 for a single person, $3,000 for household of two and $250 for each additional family member.

Medicaid has other programs offering limited benefits at subsidized rates, as well as more comprehensive programs for seniors and the disabled.

For more information go to www.med-quest.us or call 692-8069.

Medicare offers health insurance for residents 65 years and older, disabled and those in special medical circumstances. Go to www.medicare.gov or call 800-633-4227.

"The last alternative is the most costly: You don't have any insurance," said Bill Corba, Kaiser's vice president and chief marketing officer. "The sad thing is so many people take that option, then they have an accident or something happens and they have an even worse financial situation than when they started."

Reach Karen Consilio at kconsilio@staradvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 14, 2010 6:50 a.m. HST

The crystal meth epidemic may have eased, but it is far from over, substance abuse treatment providers say, pointing to state figures that show most adult admissions to treatment centers in the islands continue to be for "ice" and that the number of people seeking help for crystal meth addictions rose last year.

The number of adults who entered state-funded drug treatment centers for crystal meth addictions increased to 3,536 last fiscal year, up about 19 percent from fiscal year 2008 and 8 percent from fiscal year 2007.

Officials attributed some of that spike to new programs that targeted crystal meth addicts, but said the higher number is still worrisome.

Alan Johnson, chief executive officer and president of Hina Mauka and chairman of the Hawaii Substance Abuse Coalition, said the crystal meth epidemic might not be as bad as it was about five years ago, when the state's ice problem was among the worst in the nation.

But at a time when state funding cuts mean treatment centers have fewer resources for clients, providers want to remind the public the ice problem is still a significant one.

He said of the 1,500 adults who sought treatment at Hina Mauka last year, about 40 percent were addicted to crystal meth.

"That's the lion's share" of admissions, he said.

Statewide, 45.5 percent of state-funded adult admissions to treatment centers were for crystal meth in fiscal year 2009, higher than the 40.9 percent in the previous fiscal year but down from a four-year high of 49.6 percent in fiscal year 2006.

Meanwhile, 32.6 percent of state-funded adult admissions were for alcohol last fiscal year, and 11.5 percent were for marijuana.

Johnson said one of the difficulties with crystal meth is that addicts often need more intensive treatment compared with those recovering from addictions to other drugs or alcohol. He said 30-day treatment programs turn into 60-day programs for crystal meth addicts.

Keith Yamamoto, chief of the state Health Department's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division, said the admission figures help guide state policy, including where money for treatment is funneled.

"This data helps us understand the problem and the degree and the direction," said Yamamoto. "We want to always make sure that our approach ... (is) a balanced approach."

The division got about $19.4 million in state funds last fiscal year for treatment services, down from the $21.4 million in state funds in fiscal year 2008, according to reports to the Legislature.

Funding for prevention remained about the same over the last two years - at about $5.1 million.

Yamamoto pointed out that it is important to note that adults and minors have different addiction risks.

Among those 18 and under, the drug of choice is not crystal meth, but marijuana.

Some 52.8 percent of minors entering division-funded treatment programs sought help for marijuana use (from 58.5 percent in fiscal year 2006), while 40 percent sought treatment for alcohol use (up from 34.3 percent in 2006).

Just 0.3 percent sought help for crystal meth addictions, a figure that dropped from 2.5 percent in fiscal year 2006.

Yamamoto said alcohol abuse among minors in particular is a growing concern. Recent surveys showed more minors are turning to alcohol, and he said he expected the number of minors seeking help for alcohol addiction to continue to grow in coming years.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@starbulletin.com

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 13, 2010 6:50 a.m. HST

A U.S. Coast Guard H C-130 from Honolulu is joining the search today for a mariner that went missing near Pingelap, in the Federated States of Micronesia.

The Coast Guard in Guam received a report 10:25 p.m. Friday, regarding a man, about 40-years old, in a 13-foot black and blue canoe who was separated from his party during a fishing trip about 150 yards northwest of Pingelap. The fishing party was on their way back to shore after the weather turned bad.

The HC-130 left Barbers Point yesterday. A U.S. Navy P-3 Orionfrom Kadena Air Base in Japan, is also scheduled to join the search today.

(Report Provided by The Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - June 12, 2010 10:25 a.m. HST

Soon after the tsunami scare in February reminded Hawaii residents of their vulnerability, Dr. Maxwell Cooper, former director of the Hawaii Rifle Association, called his state representative.

Others were calling lawmakers with concerns about faulty warning sirens, inadequate shelters and reliable access to food and water if a powerful tsunami did reach the Islands. Cooper was worried about protecting guns.

Cooper asked state Rep. Ken Ito (D, Kaneohe) to help revive a bill to prohibit the state from confiscating legal firearms and ammunition during an emergency or disaster. The bill, similar to legislation passed on the mainland after Hurricane Katrina, had been sitting in the state House for a year and was going nowhere.

"The tsunami let everybody focus on why it was a good idea," said Cooper, who is retired and splits his time between Kaneohe and Washington state.

Within weeks the bill - sponsored by state Sen. Sam Slom (R, Kahala-Hawaii Kai) - sailed through the House with little objection. Gov. Linda Lingle signed it into law in May.

The new law is a rare victory for gun-rights advocates in the islands.

Hawaii has the lowest percentage of household gun ownership in the nation. According to a recent study by the Violence Policy Center, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that has sought to restrict guns to prevent gun violence, 9.7 percent of households had guns in 2007, the latest data available.

Hawaii also has the lowest gun death rate in the nation at 2.82 deaths per 100,000 residents in 2007. In Louisiana, where police confiscated guns in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the gun death rate was 19.87, the highest in the nation.

But the number of guns in Hawaii is increasing. Last year, permits were issued covering a record 33,678 firearms, up 29.6 percent from the previous high in 2008, according to the state Attorney General's Office.

In the past decade the number of firearms registered in Hawaii has jumped by 147.3 percent.

The National Rifle Association successfully challenged the gun confiscation policy in New Orleans after Katrina in federal court and pushed for state and federal laws prohibiting the seizure of legal firearms during emergencies.

The NRA used powerful video taken during the evacuation after Katrina - including footage of an elderly woman wrestled to her kitchen floor by police for holding her revolver - to argue for the need to protect Second Amendment rights.

President George W. Bush signed a federal law prohibiting gun confiscation by federal officials during emergencies as part of a homeland security spending bill in 2006.

"We all saw the video after Katrina," Slom said, "those visual images of law-abiding citizens being rousted in their houses, and in some cases actually being handcuffed, when looting was taking place and when we know that law enforcement is overstretched.

"They can't react. There are not enough of them to do things. So it comes down to you have to protect yourself, you have to protect your family, and people choose to do that in different ways. This is one option."

Slom said his bill, which easily passed the state Senate last year and carried over this year, probably would not have moved in the House without the tsunami scare.

"That was a real-world experience," he said. "I know I had a lot of constituents call, and I'm sure other legislators did, too. They were very concerned about it, as well they should have been."

Ito, after speaking with Cooper, urged state Rep. Faye Hanohano (D, Puna- Pahoa-Hawaiian Acres) to move the bill out of her House Public Safety Committee. Hanohano had also heard concerns from some residents, but acted mainly because Ito asked her.

"People were starting to wonder, can they take the weapons?" Hanohano told a reporter in March.

The bill cleared the House Judiciary Committee and then the full House in early April. Liberal Democrats, who could have used the opportunity to debate the larger issue of gun restrictions, mostly stayed silent. Just six House Democrats voted against the bill.

Maj. Gen. Robert G.F. Lee, director of state Civil Defense, opposed the bill last year and warned that it could frustrate law enforcement during an emergency. He said the state had not moved to seize firearms during previous emergencies and disasters. He also cited the threat the nation faces from terrorism.

But Civil Defense chose to remain neutral this year.

There was only isolated looting on Kauai after the devastating Hurricane Iniki struck in 1992. State Rep. Hermina Morita (D, Hanalei-Anahola-Kapaa), one of the six House Democrats who voted against the bill, managed a small shopping center in Kilauea at the time and said no one took advantage of the chaos to plunder.

"It was not an issue. I think part of it was that it was a small community," she said. "You just saw the best in people come out in times of emergency."

Morita, who favors stronger gun restrictions, believes the new law is unnecessary. "I just saw this as a total sellout to the NRA," she said.

Gun-rights advocates, citing lessons from Katrina and the tsunami scare, told lawmakers that the aloha spirit might not prevail after another disaster.

State and county officials may not have seized firearms during previous emergencies, gun owners said, but that is no guarantee overzealous police would not try to infringe on Second Amendment rights in the future.

"The gun owners and law enforcement will both know their responsibilities in an emergency," Cooper said of the new law. "The gun owners will know they have to possess lawfully, and store lawfully, and law enforcement will know that under those circumstances they don't need to confiscate firearms."

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddpledge@staradvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 12, 2010 8:15 a.m. HST

WAILUKU, June 12, 2010 - Volunteers with the American Red Cross responding to a residential fire reported on Lono Avenue in Kahului. Red Cross disaster volunteers are heading to the scene to meet with affected residents and ensure their immediate emergency needs for food, shelter and clothing are met. Caseworkers will continue to follow up with anyone affected in the coming weeks to provide referrals, guidance or additional assistance as needed to help with the recovery process.

The Red Cross encourages all families to make a disaster plan to include an evacuation plan with two different routes of escape, a communications plan to help families reconnect after disaster and a disaster supplies kit that is readily available to aid in a quick evacuation. Information on developing a family plan is available to the public at www.redcross.org, or a brochure can be requested by calling 734-2101.

The Red Cross is a non-profit humanitarian organization which provides assistance for immediate emergency needs. All Red Cross assistance to disaster victims is free. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it depends on public contributions to help others. To help the Red Cross assist victims of this and other local disasters, send a contribution to:

American Red Cross
Hawaii State Chapter
45 North Market Street
Wailuku, HI 96793

Make a secure online donation at www.hawaiiredcross.org or call: (808) 739-8109

(Report Provided by the Hawai'i Chapter of th American Red Cross)

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NEWS FLASH - June 11, 2010 6:20 p.m. HST

No change has been reported to the brush fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Fire crews today continued to conduct mop up operations. The fire area will be monitored tonight by fire fighters.

Since Wednesday, Honoapiilani Highway traffic has been flowing steadily. However, because tomorrow, Saturday, has a number of large public events scheduled in West Maui - such as the Kamehameha Day Pa'u Parade and a Maui County Hawaiian Canoe Association regatta - both of which could bring thousands of motorists to and from West Maui, anyone needing to know the status of Honoapiilani Highway is urged to call the advisory line maintained by Maui Police for any information on road closures. That number is 986-1200.

There will be no further news updates until the fire is determined to be extinguished or a change in the situation affecting public safety occurs.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 11, 2010 12:10 p.m. HST

President Barack Obama has issued a proclamation in honor of King Kamehameha Day that extols the courage, leadership and humanity of the man who unified the Hawaiian Islands 200 years ago.

The presidential proclamation issued yesterday reads, in part: "On this bicentennial King Kamehameha Day, we celebrate the history and heritage of the Aloha State, which has immeasurably enriched our national life and culture."

Obama notes the injustice suffered by native Hawaiians as well as their resilience, and he praises "Hawaii's steadfast sense of community and mutual support."

"Truly, the Aloha Spirit of Hawaii echoes the American Spirit," the proclamation reads, "representing the opportunities we all have to grow and learn from one another as we carry our Nation toward a brighter day."

(Report Provided by The Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - June 11, 2010 11:20 a.m. HST Fire Zone Reaches 6,200 Acres - Activity Winding Down
No notable activity occurred last night as firefighters from the Wailuku and Kula fire stations monitored the burn area for flare ups. Before nightfall yesterday, heavy equipment provided by the County's Public Works Department and Hawaiian Cement placed a fire break mauka of the Kamehameha Golf Course to support the perimeter. At daylight this morning Air One returned to provide assistance. Honoapiilani Highway is not affected and no injuries reported. Fire officials report that the brush fire remains at 90 percent containment with an estimated 6,200 acres burned. The public can continue to call the advisory line maintained by Maui Police for any information on road closures. That phone number is 986-1200.	To see video of the fire at its peak, click here.
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NEWS FLASH - June 11, 2010 7:25 a.m. HST

WAILUKU - One sign that construction may be picking up again is that Towne Island Homes announced this week it is resuming work on two Maui projects.

As recently as February, Towne Development asked the Maui Planning Commission for an extension on the completion deadline for its Ke Ali'i Ocean Villas in Kihei. It has built 111 units of an eventual 144 condominiums, and now it has started another 11, according to Vice Chairman Christopher Lau.

"We are seeing the market move in a positive direction, at a steady pace," he said. "We anticipate making additional announcements regarding our plans to resume construction at other locations in Maui and throughout the islands before the end of this year."

When financial markets seized up in October 2008, Towne buttoned up the three model homes at its Milo Court project in Kehalani, along with everything else it had going.

Milo Court, a paired-home or duplex project, was restarted last fall and has sold 23 dwellings at prices starting in the mid-$300,000s.

Monday, Towne began work on 10 more. Milo Court houses are 1,425 to 1,465 square feet on condominium lots. Phase 2 will have 48 units.

The larger and pricier ($539,000 and up) Ke Ali'i project with ocean views over South Kihei Road will have 11 multifamily buildings.

Towne began developing both projects around 2004. Ke Ali'i required a special management area permit, which usually has a term of five years, although extensions are common.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 11, 2010 6:35 a.m. HST

Average daily room rates declined by 2.1 percent to $175.84 in April, while statewide occupancy increased by 2.6 percentage points to 64.5 percent, according to a report today by Hospitality Advisors LLC.

Joseph Toy, the company's president and chief executive officer, said the continued recovery is good news as the state enters the busier summer months.

"As in past cycles, Oahu and Maui tend to recover first, with luxury and upscale hotels leading the way with visitors trading up in travel due to attractive price discounting," Toy said. "Summer will be very telling as it gives us a longer period to evaluate the strength and pace of the recovery going into 2011."

Oahu led the state in occupancy, with 69.9 percent in April, a 0.2 percent drop from the year before.

Occupancies on Kauai and the Big Island were flat. Kauai stayed the same at 54.1 percent, and the Big Island saw a 0.6 percentage point increase from last year to 54.9 percent.

"In Kauai and the Big Island, there is some occupancy improvement," said Murray Towill, president of the Hawaii Hotel & Lodging Association. "But the bottom line is that they've got the furthest to recovery."

Maui lifted the entire state with a 10.5 percentage point increase to 66.7 percent in April. Its average daily room rate dropped by 7.1 percent, but it still had the state's highest rate at $227.89.

And despite the heavy discounting, Maui's revenue per available room increased by 10.2 percent due to the stronger occupancy.

Even though the Makena Beach & Golf Resort, formerly the Maui Prince, was recently in foreclosure, the once-troubled property was able to double its occupancy from last year.

The property was up for sale in a court-mandated public auction last month, and the highest bidder so far was the lender, Wells Fargo Bank, with a $55 million bid. The property could still go to other, higher bidders when the Maui Circuit Court holds its confirmation hearing next month.

"When we were in the foreclosure process, it was very difficult to do a budget," said Kelly Lewis, general manager of the Maui resort. "You're pulling numbers from the sky."

Lewis said he expects room rates will continue to be a challenge throughout the year and even through 2011. The property was marketed as a resort destination with lower rates to keep it competitive with other hotels on the island.

"You might see a slight increase in 2011, but you won't start seeing significant increases until 2012," he said.

"Once you have the compression (higher occupancy), you can go after the rate."

Lewis said that once the confirmation of a new owner is done, the Makena resort can look to renovations as early as 2011.

"With the foreclosure behind us ... there's capital dollars that can be infused into the property, which is a nice position to be in," Lewis said.

Towill also said occupancy must first increase before hotels can start increasing rates.

"Much of that occupancy increase is accompanied by discounting room rates; it doesn't have a positive impact on the financial picture," Towill said.

"It's supply and demand. Unfortunately the rate and revenue recovery is always a lot slower when you go through a drop like this."

Statewide, luxury properties gained 6 percentage points to 70.5 percent. Luxury average daily rates dropped 3.5 percent to $247.35. Revenue per available room at luxury properties increased by 5.5 percent to $174.38.

Visitor arrivals in April increased by 1.9 percent across all markets. But domestic arrivals slowed, declining 0.3 percent due to a drop in U.S. East arrivals.

Overseas visitor arrivals increased by 5 percent in April.

Reach Gene Park at gpark@staradvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 6:25 p.m. HST

A flare-up at approximately 1:30 p.m. today added an estimated 400 acres to a brush fire that's been burning since Monday evening. Fire officials report that the brush fire remains at 90% containment. The flare-up was brought under control by firefighters aided by 4 helicopters conducting water drops. The brush fire has now burned an estimated 6,200 acres.

Twenty-five Maui County and State Department of Forestry and Wildlife firefighters were transported by helicopter to the mauka ridge line where the flare up occurred. The personnel cleared brush and trees along the ridge line to help prevent additional flare-ups.

The high winds and terrain filled with steep slopes and brush were contributing factors to the flare-up. No injuries are reported and Honoapiilani Highway remained open.

At nightfall helicopter operations will cease for safety reasons. Fire crews will remain on scene throughout the night to monitor hot spots. Fire officials will assess the situation at daylight.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 5:05 p.m. HST

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii—The County of Maui Department of Public Works announced that safety improvements to Main Street in Wailuku will be made with construction of a retaining wall with guardrail fronting the Iao Congregational Church starting Monday, June 14, 2010. The project will continue through early-August 2010. Work hours will be Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Traffic is not expected to be noticeably affected. The $147,263.00 contract was awarded to Betsill Brothers Construction.

For more information, call the County of Maui Department of Public Works at 270-7745.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 4:10 p.m. HST

Mayor Charmaine Tavares comments on the State Water Commission's Decision on West Maui Na Wai Eha Instream Flow Standards

" My water director, legal counsel, and I have not yet completed our review of this very lengthy and comprehensive decision. At this point, however, I can say that I appreciate the enormous effort that went into the decision, and the Commission's attempt to balance the competing interests of the parties.

"The Water Commission cannot hope to please everybody when making a decision of this magnitude, particularly when there is not enough water to satisfy all of the demands for it, whether for the public water supply, for large and small-scale agriculture, for traditional and cultural practices, or for the stream ecology. It appears that the Commission did its best to balance instream uses and off-stream uses, as the State Water Code and Constitution require.

"I am grateful that the Commission granted the County's water use permits in their entirety and also recognized the County's need for enough water to operate our Iao surface water treatment plant."

For the official report of the State Water Resources Commission decision today, click here.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 2 p.m. HST Crews Start to Claim Victory Over Ma'alaea Fire, Thank Supporters
Fire officials have declared the brush fire 90 percent contained. The fire that started in the late evening of Monday, June 7, has burned as estimated 5,800 acres. No structures were burned and no injuries are reported today. Fire department personnel will remain on scene today to continue extinguishing hot spots with assistance from Air One helicopter conducting water drops. Honoapiilani Highway has remained open to traffic throughout yesterday, last night and today. Demobilization is expected to begin later today. Firefighting personnel from the State's Division of Forestry and Wildlife will be working at the uppermost mauka part of the perimeter to ensure that the fire is not active in those areas. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Maui County Mayor Charmaine Tavares offers these comments to thank the firefighters, partner agencies and organizations and the Maui community:	To see video of the fire at its peak, click here.
"Our community is grateful for the hard work of our firefighters. It’s been a grueling three days for these men and women as they dealt with difficult terrain and wind conditions to protect people and properties. Fighting this fire and keeping it from increasing was no small accomplishment. It took the work of our entire community together. "There were many residents, visitors and businesses affected by the brush fire and as in all public emergencies the cooperation of the public becomes an important factor. I want to thank everyone for their patience and understanding these last few days. The safety of our residents, visitors and first responders cannot be taken lightly. We’re fortunate that no one was hurt and no homes or businesses were destroyed. "Many individuals and businesses reached out to us and offered unselfish support without being asked. The situation placed quite a strain on our community - yet there are so many stories about the kindness of people who did what they could to help alleviate the distress of others. I’m very proud of our caring community. "As I received briefings throughout these past few days it became apparent that there are countless to thank - including the State Civil Defense and U.S. Senators Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka for their assistance in securing federal aid to offset costs associated with this massive fire. "The following agencies and organizations deserve special recognition: Helicopter support: Windward Aviation, Pacific Helicopters, Hawaii National Guard Heavy equipment: Goodfellow Brothers, Hawaiian Cement, Spencer Homes Inc., West Maui Land Co. Emergency shelter assistance: American Red Cross, Maui Visitors Bureau, Maui Hotel and Lodging Association Meals and refreshments for fire and police crews: The Salvation Army, Four Seasons Resort, Maui Food Bank, Starbucks, Krispy Kreme State agencies: State Civil Defense, Hawaii National Guard, Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife Mapping support: County of Maui’s Geographical Services Division, Pacific Disaster Center Site support: Maui Ocean Center "Throughout these past few days, each of these agencies and organizations have partnered with the County of Maui’s Fire Department, Police Department, Civil Defense Agency, Public Works Department, and our Transportation Department to ensure that our community remained safe.“ (Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 1:45 p.m. HST Flare-Up Surprises Fire Crews
At approximately 1:30 p.m. today, the Waikapu side of the perimeter experienced a significant flare-up caused by high wind conditions and terrain filled with steep slopes and brush. The flare-up is noticeable from miles away and is located approximately a quarter-mile above the Kamehameha Golf Course club house. The flare-up is moving mauka of the golf course and does not pose an immediate threat to any structures at this time. Two helicopters are on scene with additional air support being deployed. Honoapiilani Highway is not affected at this time. Slow moving traffic in the immediate area of Waikapu may be impacted by drivers viewing the noticeable smoke.	FLARE UP - This view, over the Kahelani housing subdivision shows a significant flare-up around 1:30 p.m. today. (Maui County Photo) To see video of the fire at its peak, click here.
(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 1:50 p.m. HST

KAHULUI — Lt. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona, Jr., the state Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) dedicated a new, state-of-the-art Explosive Detection System (EDS) at Kahului Airport in a ceremony today with state and federal officials.

The new EDS provides a fully-integrated, enhanced baggage security screening system capable of detecting explosives, weapons and other contraband materials for the protection of air travelers. Comprised of six explosive detection machines provided by the TSA, the new system is designed to have sufficient capacity to handle growth for the next 20 years.

“As Hawai`i is a popular destination for many international tourists, it is great to see our airports will be equipped with the most up-to-date security systems that provide a safe and convenient experience for travelers," said Lt. Governor James R. "Duke" Aiona, Jr.

“Along with improving air travel security, the new EDS will open up lobby space at our airport,” said DOT Director Brennon Morioka. “This will help simplify the flight check-in process for our air travelers and help maintain a positive first and last impression of our state that travelers receive when they visit our airports,” Morioka added.

The EDS Integration Improvements Project is part of Phase IB of the Kahului Airport Terminal Improvements Project. Additional work included the construction and installation of new baggage conveyor equipment, seven new baggage carousels and a special room for Explosive Trace Detection operations.

“The passenger baggage check-in experience will be seamless and simple,” said Brian Sekiguchi, Deputy Director, Airports Division. “Baggage will enter the security screening area on conveyor belts from the check-in counters and will no longer require passengers to carry their bags to the EDS machines.”

Construction and integration of the system by Bodell Construction Company was completed one-and-a-half months ahead of schedule at an approximate cost of $24.6 million. As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Hawai‘i received $18.5 million from TSA for this project.

(Report Provided by the State of Hawai'i, Department of Transportation)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 10:20 a.m. HST

HONOLULU -- The State Commission on Water Resource Management (Commission) issued its final decision and order in the contested case to set interim instream flow standards for four west Maui streams –Waihe‘e, Waiehu, ‘Iao and Waikapu -- known together as “Na Wai ‘Eha.”

Decision and Order
The Commission has ordered the following amended interim instream flow standards (IIFS):

The Commission’s decision strongly emphasized responsible management of public trust resources.

“Hawai‘i has been fortunate compared to many regions around the world in that we have abundant sources of clean water,” stated the majority opinion of the Commission. “However these resources are not infinite, and due to changing weather patterns and demands, in many parts of our state we have reached or exceeded the capacity of existing water resources.”

The Commission’s decision on Na Wai Eha, as well as its decision late last month on east Maui, requires all parties to address critical water issues which have been avoided for far too long.

Entities diverting water from streams, including the County, will need to invest in water systems and infrastructure to increase effective use and conservation of water. Larger diverters facing ongoing and growing needs, including the County, were encouraged by the Commission to explore joint development of reclamation and water recycling in order to address their needs without returning to these streams.

“Even if we allowed 100 percent of the stream water to be diverted, there is simply not enough water in these streams to meet the offstream demands” stated Laura H. Thielen, Chairperson of the Commission. “The combination of drought, the degradation of our watersheds from invasive species, and years of growth and development has left our streams with far less water than was available 50 years ago. Maui County is particularly vulnerable to these changes as in some places they rely on streams for 85 percent of their water supply. This reliance is no longer sustainable and Maui needs to develop alternative sources of water, reclamation and conservation,” said Thielen.

The Commission’s decision, following closely on the heels of its east Maui streams decision just two weeks ago, is likely to have far-reaching repercussions leading to improved water resource use and management.

The final decision and order can be found on the Commission’s website at http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/cwrm/currentissues.htm.

(Report Provided by the State of Hawai'i, Department of Land and Natural Resources)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 10:15 a.m. HST

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has ISSUED a WIND ADVISORY for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA which remains in effect until 6 p.m. this evening. The high wind warning has been cancelled. A WIND ADVISORY for the island of Kahoolawe remains in effect until 6 p.m. this evening.

2. EFFECTS: A wind advisory means that winds of 30 mph are expected.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 10:10 a.m. HST

LAHAINA, MAUI – The Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Na Ala Hele Trails Program on Maui today closed the Lahaina Pali trail in the West Maui Mountains, due to the wildfire in the Ma‘alaea area. Trail closure signs will be posted at each end of the trail, at the trailheads.

The Lahaina Pali Trail will remain closed until further notice. Conditions on the trail and in the surrounding areas may be extremely dangerous to hikers. DLNR advises all persons to please avoid this area.

Once the fire has been contained and extinguished, Na Ala Hele will assess the situation and decide upon its further course of action.

For more information call the Maui Na Ala Hele Trails and Access Program office at (808) 873-3509.

(Report Provided by the State of Hawai'i, Department of Land and Natural Resources)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 8:50 a.m. HST

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has ISSUED a WIND WARNING for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA which remains in effect until 6 p.m. this evening.

A WIND ADVISORY for the island of Kahoolawe has been CONTINUED until 6 p.m. this evening. A high wind warning means a hazardous high wind event is occurring. These strong winds can lead to property damage.

2. EFFECTS: Winds on Haleakala summit will be 35 mph to 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph today. Winds on the island of Kahoolawe will be from the east to northeast at 25 to 35 mph with gusts of 45 to 50 mph.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 8:40 a.m. HST

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has CONTINUED the Red Flag Warning for LEEWARD SECTIONS of ALL ISLANDS, which remains in effect until 6:00 P.M. this evening.

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures will create rapid fire growth potential. A Red Flag Warning does not predict new fire starts.

2. EFFECTS: Strong and gusty trade winds coupled with very dry conditions will produce conditions favorable for rapid fire growth today. Regardless of fluctuations in relative humidity during the overnight hours, generally dry conditions and strong trade winds will prevail. Critical fire weather conditions for leeward sections of all Islands are likely through Thursday afternoon.

3. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 7:30 a.m. HST

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii-- County of Maui offices will close Friday, June 11, 2010 in observance of King Kamehameha Day.

The Lanai landfill will be closed; Central Maui Landfill will be open from 7 a.m. to noon, the Olowalu Recycling & Refuse Convenience Center will be open from 9 a.m. to noon, the Hana landfills will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the Molokai landfill will be open from 8 a.m. until noon.

All County pools will be closed on the holiday due to budget constraints. Pools will be open on Saturday and Sunday. The public is advised to call 270-8208 for daily recorded pool schedule information, which is updated by 9 a.m. seven days a week.

The Waiehu Golf Course will be open; trash collection will follow a normal schedule.

Akaku: Maui Community Television is closed Friday June 11, 2010 in observance of Kamehameha Day. Normal operating hours will resume on Monday June 14, 2010 at 10:00 am.

(Information Provided by the County of Maui and Akaku: Maui Community Television)

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NEWS FLASH - June 10, 2010 6:50 a.m. HST

State forestry workers were battling yesterday to prevent a brush fire from entering habitats for endangered species in the West Maui Mountains.

The fire, about 75 percent contained as of noon, has burned an estimated 5,800 acres and at one point halted traffic and prompted the evacuation of residents along Maalaea Bay Place and several workers at a wind farm.

"When I looked out the window, it looked like the whole world was orange," said Dr. Gregory Berlin, a Maalaea resident.

Berlin said several residents evacuated their homes Tuesday, but he chose to stay since his house is made mainly of concrete and tin.

He said a fire two years ago burned most of the trees on the rise by his home.

"It didn't have anything else to burn," he said.

Some 22 state forestry workers were at the 3,000-foot elevation level, focusing efforts on containing the fire from spreading into the endangered-species area, including facilities for rearing and releasing nene birds, said Glenn Shishido, a state forestry supervisor.

"So far, so good," he said. "We've made good progress today and are watching for any flare-ups."

The brush fire has burned one or two electric poles and knocked out one of three power transmission lines serving West Maui, said Maui Electric spokeswoman Kaui Awai-Dickson.

She said electrical service was continuing into the West Maui area.

The blaze caused minimal damage to Kaheawa Wind Farm, burning some business signs and some endangered plants near the wind turbines, according to the venture.

The smoke was so thick that aerial reconnaissance crews had difficulty assessing the full extent of the fire until yesterday morning.

As visibility improved, the estimate of the burned area was increased by 3,500 acres.

Some 40 Maui County firefighters, along with a couple of private helicopter companies, were battling portions of the blaze.

Traffic between Central and West Maui resumed on Honoapiilani Highway yesterday after being stall Tuesday and forcing close to a dozen residents to find overnight shelter at county gyms operated by the Red Cross.

Gusts of 40 mph contributed to the rapid spread of the fire.

Reach Gary Kubota at gkubota@staradvertiser.com

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 5:35 p.m. HST 25 Firefighters Remain On Scene as Kahalawai Fire Burns Itself Out
Fire officials report that the fire remains 75 percent contained with an estimated 5,800 acres burned. Both lanes of Honoapiilani Highway remained open throughout today. For safety reasons, helicopter operations will cease at nightfall. Twenty-five Maui Fire Department personnel will remain on scene tonight. At daylight tomorrow, fire officials will assess the situation and resume helicopter support for water drops as necessary. Maui Police will continue to post updates to Honoapiilani Highway on the road closure advisory phone line : 986-1200. No injuries are reported and currently there is no threat to structures.	Click the arrow on the window, above, to view unedited, "raw" footage of the Ma'alaea fire burning Mauka of the Honoapi'ilani Highway Tuesday night. Flames initially headed toward the east and were visible from Waikapu before strong winds pushed the fire upcountry past Kaheawa Wind Farm. The video is not narrated. (Exclusive Maui TV News footage). Click here to see more video.
(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 4:05 p.m. HST

Peter Ingram, executive vice president and CFO of Hawaiian Airlines, said the addition of three new Airbus A330-200 aircraft to Hawaiian’s fleet this year is giving the company increased flexibility to expand its Las Vegas service. “We’ve known for a long time how popular Las Vegas is with Maui residents, so we’re pleased to offer this new flight to address that demand,” said Ingram. “At the same time, we believe the convenience of this new nonstop service will boost visitor traffic to Maui, as Las Vegas is home to so many people with strong ties to the islands as well as a busy hub for flight connections on other carriers.”

“This is great news for our community,” said Mayor Charmaine Tavares. “Our residents will enjoy flying direct to a favorite destination. Aside from being a fun vacation spot – many of our island families have relatives and friends in Las Vegas. This new service will make it more convenient for them to stay connected. I want to thank Hawaiian Airlines for expanding their flight service and bringing this welcomed addition to Maui.”

Hawaiian’s new Las Vegas nonstop flight is designed for the travel convenience of Maui residents. Flight #32 will depart Kahului Airport on Mondays and Thursdays at 8:00 a.m. and arrive at McCarran International Airport at 4:35 p.m., giving enough time to enjoy a full evening in Las Vegas the first day. Flight #31 will depart Las Vegas on Sundays and Wednesdays at 6:25 p.m. and arrive on Maui at 9:25 p.m., allowing for a full final vacation day in Las Vegas before arriving home in time to enjoy a good night’s sleep. When Daylight Saving Time begins, the Las Vegas departure and arrival times will be approximately one hour earlier.

Hawaiian will serve the Maui-Las Vegas route with its wide-body Boeing 767-300 aircraft seating up to 264 passengers, resulting in more than 2,000 new air seats per month. Passengers will be treated to the hospitality of Hawaiian’s distinctive and award-winning “Hawaii Starts Here” onboard service, showcasing the culture, music, natural beauty, and people of Hawaii throughout the flight.

The Maui-Las Vegas flight is the third nonstop flight that Hawaiian is adding to its schedule this year between Maui and the U.S. mainland. This past weekend, Hawaiian launched its first-ever nonstop flights between Maui and Oakland, adding 24,000 new air seats for the peak summer season. On June 17, Hawaiian is re-introducing seasonal nonstop service between Maui and San Diego for the first time since 2008, providing an additional 18,000 air seats for the summer.

Tickets can be booked online at HawaiianAirlines.com, by calling Hawaiian’s reservations department toll-free at (800) 367-5320, or through any professional travel agent.

(Report Provided by Hawaiian Airlines)

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NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 3:15 p.m. HST 5,800 Acres Burned, 60 Firefighters On Scene

Fire officials report that the fire has burned an estimated 5,800 acres and is now 75 percent contained. Both lanes of Honoapiilani Highway remain open to traffic. However, motorists are cautioned that wind conditions could adversely affect the fire and cause intermittent road closures. Maui Police will continue to post updates to Honoapiilani Highway on the road closure advisory phone line : 986-1200. Forty firefighters from the Wailuku, Lahaina and Kahului fire stations are on scene. Fire crews are aided by three water tankers, two bulldozers and five helicopters - supplied by Windward Aviation and Pacific Helicopter – conducting water drops today. In addition, 20 State Department of Forestry and Wildlife firefighters are also on scene. No injuries are reported and currently there is no threat to structures. The next update is expected to be released at 5:30 pm today. (Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 2:30 p.m. HST

County Offices to Close in Observance of King Kamehameha Day

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii-- County of Maui offices will close Friday, June 11, 2010 in observance of King Kamehameha Day.

The Lanai landfill will be closed; Central Maui Landfill will be open from 7 a.m. to noon, the Olowalu Recycling & Refuse Convenience Center will be open from 9 a.m. to noon, the Hana landfills will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the Molokai landfill will be open from 8 a.m. until noon.

All County pools will be closed on the holiday due to budget constraints. Pools will be open on Saturday and Sunday. The public is advised to call 270-8208 for daily recorded pool schedule information, which is updated by 9 a.m. seven days a week.

The Waiehu Golf Course will be open; trash collection will follow a normal schedule.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 8:05 a.m. HST

Crews, Tools Effective Against Ma'alaea Fire

Maui Police report that both lanes of Honoapiilani Highway are open to traffic. However, motorists are cautioned that the fire and heavy smoke may cause intermittent road closures. Maui Police will continue to post updates to Honoapiilani Highway on the road closure advisory phone line 986-1200.

Fire officials report that at daylight this morning, an estimated 2,300 acres have been burned. Twenty-six firefighters remained on scene last night. Four helicopters will return to assist fire crews with water drops. The two Black Hawk helicopters requested by Mayor Tavares yesterday completed their assistance and returned to their Big Island base. They will be requested again should it be necessary today.

Fire crews will focus on preventing the rush bfire from advancing further on the Ukumehame side of the perimeter. The fire is reported to be approximately a half-mile from the roadway. The American Red Cross remained open last night with 10 individuals at the War Memorial Gym in Wailuku and one person at the Lahaina Civic Center. At 9:00 a.m. this morning, the Red Cross will close both shelters but remain on stand-by alert mode. Should the fire impact access to and from the West Side, the Red Cross will re-activate both shelters.

No injuries were reported from last night's operations. The firefighter that was transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center for smoke inhalation was treated and released. The Fire and Police Department wishes to thank the Salvation Army for organizing meals and water for personnel yesterday and through the night.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 8 a.m. HST

High Winds To Remain Through Tomorrow

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has CONTINUED the WIND ADVISORY for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA in effect until 6 a.m. Thursday.

A Wind Advisory means that winds of 30 mph are expected.

2. EFFECTS: Winds on Haleakala summit will be from the east at 25 mph to 35 mph with gusts of 45 to 50 mph.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 9, 2010 6:35 a.m. HST

Hawai'i Census Efficiency Surprises Even The Experts

Local census officials expect to complete door-to-door census taking within the next week, capping a surprisingly efficient enumeration effort more than a month ahead of schedule and potentially boosting overall census participation in Hawaii to more than 80 percent, compared with just 64 percent 10 years ago.

And that's not just a matter of statistics; a vastly improved count could bring the state substantially more federal money over the next decade.

The success of this year's census effort in Hawaii is largely due to the emphasis on local benefits in census advertising and to an unprecedented effort—aided by hundreds of community groups serving as census partners—to reach out to traditionally hard-to-count ethnic and regional populations, said Kathleen Popa, manager of the Waianae Census Office.

The Honolulu Census Office has already completed follow-up visits to some 73,000 residences that did not return a 2010 census questionnaire via mail. The Waianae office, which covers Oahu's west side and North Shore as well as the outer islands, has made contact with nearly all of the 120,000 residences on its follow-up list and will spend the next week trying to coax responses from an estimated 20 percent who have not yet participated.

2000 HAWAII CENSUS DATA
» Population 1,211,538
» Foreign born 17.5 percent
» Language other than English spoken at home (age 5+) 26.6 percent
» High school graduates (age 25+) 84.6 percent
» Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+) 26.2 percent
» People with a disability (age 5+) 199,819
» Mean travel time to work, minutes (age 16+) 26.1
» Home ownership 56.5 percent
» Median value of owner-occupied housing units $272,700
» Households 403,240
» People per household 2.92
» People per square mile 188.6

The quick turnaround for the door-to-door campaign, which was originally expected to take until late July or early August, marks the winding down of what has been a challenging yet ultimately successful effort by Hawaii's two census offices.

"I'm ecstatic," said Popa. "We've been in the office seven days a week to make sure we get a complete count and now we're in downhill mode."

Hawaii ranked third-worst in the nation in census participation, at 64 percent, during the 2000 decennial count. And while the state still fell behind the national average in mail participation this year, Honolulu Census Office manager Winnie Wilson said the success of the door-to-door campaign could push overall response to more than 80 percent.

The improvement would probably mean a significant increase in federal funds designated for the state. Census officials estimated that Hawaii lost out on $310 million over the last 10 years due to undercounting in the 2000 census.

And while the end of the count signals the premature unemployment of some 3,000 temporary census workers, taxpayers will save on the $17 per hour cost of employing each enumerator for 20 to 40 hours per week.

Popa met with regional census officials this week to strategize ways to convince the remaining census holdouts to participate.

"It helps when people recognize the person at their door," Popa said. "We did well with hiring (census takers) to work in their own neighborhoods, but for this last push, we might have to have workers going out on their own block."

The final step for each office will be to double-check vacant residences and residences that were previously deleted from census rosters.

"We go through great pains to get the most complete, accurate count," said Wilson. "It's painstaking work, but it's necessary."

Wilson noted that residents who already completed a census may still be contacted by census offices on the mainland to verify their responses.

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@staradvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 10:55 p.m. HST

Smoke Clears Enough to Reopen Honoapi'ilani Highway

Maui Police report that Honoapi'ilani Highway was reopened to traffic in both directions at 10:48 p.m. However, backups are severe and motorists are asked to be patient while the pace picks up. The highway was closed completely shortly before noon today because of the rapidly growing brushfire on the mauka slopes of Kahalawai above Ma'alaea.Smoke reduced visibility to a level below tolerance.

From 6:30 until 10:48 tonight, contraflow traffic was allowed through Ma'alaea while one lane was shut down for firefighter access to the blaze. Backups of more than a mile have been experienced in each direction of the Honoapi'ilani and Kuihelani Highways.

(Information Provided by the Maui County Police Department)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 10:35 p.m. HST

Ag Department to Unleash Predator for Stinging Nettle Caterpillar

HONOLULU - The Hawai`i Department of Agriculture (HDOA) has begun a biological control program that releases a tiny parasitic insect to control the stinging Nettle Caterpillar. The release of the natural enemy follows six years of extensive research that HDOA’s Plant Pest Control Branch has been conducting to assure that the natural enemy only affects the nettle caterpillar and no other native or beneficial insects or plants. Initial releases were made on O`ahu with more releases coming on Hawai`i Island and Maui.

“The detection of nettle caterpillar in Hawai`i quickly set HDOA on a mission to find a natural enemy that would be specific to that particular pest,” said Sandra Lee Kunimoto, Chairperson of the Hawai`i Board of Agriculture. “Although this pest was not well known in the world, our entomologists were able to find and test a tiny wasp that preys on the stinging caterpillar and nothing else found in Hawai`i.”

“The way classical biocontrol works is that the population of the natural enemy will rise and fall with the population of the target pest,” said Neil Reimer, PhD., manager of HDOA’s Plant Pest Control Branch. “It will not totally eradicate a pest, but control it to a point where it is no longer a pest. It taps nature’s way of balance in the environment.

“We had several biocontrol projects running concurrently, including the highly successful biocontrol program for the Erythrina gall wasp that has resulted in the rebounding of the native wiliwili trees and a pending program to help ranchers control fireweed, a weed pest that is toxic to cattle,” Reimer added.

Environmental assessments were conducted and the appropriate permits were obtained from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Riverdale, MD. Due to the success of Hawai`i’s biocontrol programs, the state has become a leader in the world on the use of biological control to fight invasive pests.

The Nettle Caterpillar (Darna pallivitta) was first detected at a plant nursery in Pana`ewa on Hawai`i Island in 2001 and are believed to have arrived on Rhapis palm seedlings imported from Taiwan. Since then, its population has spread throughout Hawai`i Island, as well as areas on Maui and O`ahu. Nettle caterpillars grow to about one-inch long, white in color with black bands. The caterpillar has distinct bristly spines that when touched, may cause a burning sensation that lasts about an hour. The caterpillar has been found primarily on the underside of the leaves of palm plants, grasses and lilies. (See Pest Advisory at: http://hawaii.gov/hdoa/pi/ppc/npa-1/npa01-03_netcat.pdf )

The natural predator that is being released is a stingless tiny parasitic wasp, Aroplectrus dimerus, which was found parasitizing nettle caterpillars by a HDOA entomologist who was searching for natural enemies in Taiwan in October 2004. The predator wasp lays its eggs on the larvae of the nettle caterpillar and when the eggs hatch, the wasp pupae feed on the nettle caterpillar larvae. The natural predator measures about the size of a small gnat and while it is considered a wasp, it does not harm humans or other animals.

HDOA’s entomologist collected samples of the natural enemy and sent them to HDOA’s Insect Containment Facility in Honolulu where tests were conducted under quarantine conditions to determine if it would attack any other species in Hawai`i. The tests indicated that the wasps would feed only on nettle caterpillar larvae. There were other predators of the nettle caterpillar that were tested in quarantine, but were rejected as candidates for release because they also attacked other beneficial and native insects.

HDOA also consulted on this project with entomologists at the Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural Science in Taiwan, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Institute of Zoology) in Beijing, Peoples Republic of China.

(Report Provided by the Hawai'i State Department of Agriculture)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 7 p.m. HST Ma'alaea Brush Fire Flares Up, Closes Highway
Shortly after 6:00 p.m., Maui Police re-opened Honoapiilani Highway tonight. Motorists are advised to expect delayed traffic. The road was closed just before 12 noon today as a brush fire that started Monday evening caused heavy smoke and spread towards the highway. Today 7 helicopters assisted 77 firefighters from multiple fire stations and a crew of 19 from the State's Department of Forestry and Wildlife. The helicopters - which included 2 Black Hawk helicopters provided by the National Guard at the request of Mayor Charmaine Tavares - assisted fire crews with water drops. For safety reasons air operations will cease at nightfall. Firefighters were aided by heavy equipment and water tankers from the County's Public Works Department and Hawaiian Cement Co. The American Red Cross opened shelters at the Lahaina Civic Center in West Maui and the War Memorial Gym in Wailuku.	Click the arrow on the window, above, to view unedited, "raw" footage of the Ma'alaea fire burning Mauka of the Honoapi'ilani Highway this morning. The video is not narrated. (Exclusive Maui TV News footage)
An earlier announcement incorrectly stated that cots and blankets would be available. A limited amount of cots and blankets are available for shelter users during incidents requiring overnight stays. Fire officials report that over 2,000 acres have burned in an area with difficult and inaccessible terrain. Wind conditions continued to be a factor throughout today. One firefighter was transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center this afternoon for smoke inhalation - the firefighter's condition is reported to be stable. No structures are reported damaged. (Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information) (Back to Top)

NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 5:20 p.m. HST

Strong Winds Will Last Until Thursday - At Least

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has issued a WIND ADVISORY for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA in effect until 6 a.m. Thursday.

A Wind Advisory means that winds of 30 mph are expected.

2. EFFECTS: Winds on Haleakala summit will be east 25 mph to 35 mph with higher gusts.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 1:55 p.m. HST

Red Cross Opening Shelters on Both Sides of Ma'alaea Fire

WAILUKU, June 8, 2010 – The American Red Cross is in the process of opening a shelters at Lahaina Civic Center and Maui War Memorial Gym in Wailuku for residents evacuated from their homes or prevented from returning home due to the brushfire.

WHERE Lahaina Civic Center
1840 Honoapiilani Highway

Maui War Memorial Gymnasium
1580 Kaahumanu Avenue

WHEN The shelter opened as of 1:30 PM

The Red Cross is a non-profit humanitarian organization which provides assistance for immediate emergency needs. All Red Cross assistance to disaster victims is free. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it depends on public contributions to help others. To help the Red Cross assist victims of this and other local disasters, send a contribution to:

American Red Cross
Hawaii State Chapter
45 North Market Street
Wailuku, HI 96793

(Report Provided by the Hawai'i Chapter of the American Red Cross)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 11:40 a.m. HST

Mayor Lashes At County Council for Budget Cuts

WAILUKU -- Mayor Charmaine Tavares announced Tuesday that she would allow the Maui County Council's 2011 budget to become law without her signature.

Tavares blasted the council for slashing the county's budget with what she said was little thought for how the cuts would impact the community and little understanding of how government works.

The Maui County Council last month approved a $524.2 million budget for the county that will go into effect July 1.

Tavares had proposed a budget that would cut spending by $15.2 million, and the council cut an additional $12.2 million from her plan.

As firefighters struggled to control a fire that raged above Maalaea, Tavares said she was particularly upset the council had made its largest cuts in the Maui Fire Department, noting the county was facing its worst drought in 30 years.

She was also angry that the council's budget would eliminate more than 100 vacant positions from the county's work force, saying it could take years to re-establish and fill the positions after the economy turns around. Tavares had proposed leaving around 60 of the positions unfilled in order to save money.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 10:30 a.m. HST

PUC Approves Biodiesel Projects for Maui, O'ahu

HONOLULU, Hawaii – The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission has approved a two-year contract for a subsidiary of Iowa-based Renewable Energy Group® to supply three to seven million gallons of renewable biodiesel annually to fuel Hawaiian Electric Company’s new 110-megawatt combustion turbine generator unit at Campbell Industrial Park Generating Station.

The high-quality biodiesel is processed from used cooking oil (known as yellow grease) and waste animal fat.

In a separate ruling, the PUC approved a contract for Sime Darby, Malaysia's leading multinational conglomerate, to provide approximately one million gallons of palm oil-derived biodiesel for use in Maui Electric Company’s Biodiesel Demonstration Project at its Ma'alaea Power Plant.

The demonstration will assess the use of biodiesel in place of petroleum-diesel in Maui Electric’s diesel generating units and other diesel units around the state. Converting to biodiesel will be an important part of meeting Hawaii’s renewable energy goal of 40 percent of electricity from renewable resources by 2030.

Maui Electric has long used clean-burning biodiesel for start up and shut down of its diesel generators but the demonstration will test biodiesel for four months to determine its long-term effect on air emissions, heat rate, operations and maintenance costs and other factors.

Both contracts require that the biodiesel supplier meet all technical specifications, environmental and legal requirements as well as the terms of the Environmental Policy for Procurement of Biodiesel from Sustainably-Produced Palm Oil and Locally-Grown Feedstock adopted in August 2007 by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Hawaiian Electric companies.

“We are moving forward in our quest for locally grown and processed biofuels for our units,” said Robbie Alm, Hawaiian Electric executive vice president. “At the same time, this short-term contract for the new Campbell Industrial Park generator and the biofuel to test on Maui will allow us to provide power to our customers today as we create a market in Hawaii to nurture an agricultural energy industry for tomorrow.

“We must pursue every renewable resource available -- sun, wind, our land and oceans – and take advantage of our unique ability to substitute ‘green’ fuels in place of ‘black’ oil-based fuels in our new and existing generating units,” Alm said.

Campbell Industrial Park Generating Station was completed last year and because the generator is more efficient than older combustion turbines in the Hawaiian Electric fleet, with Public Utilities Commission approval, the unit has been used to help meet Oahu’s energy needs during peak demand hours.

The new unit can start quickly in emergencies and also can increase or decrease power output rapidly. This capability can help maintain reliability as more intermittent renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar power, are added to the grid on Oahu. The unit also has “black start” capability to help restart the electric system should an island-wide outage occur.

The Public Utilities Commission approvals, which come after considering the contracts and input from the Hawaii Office of Consumer Advocacy, allow Hawaiian Electric and Maui Electric to recover the cost of the fuels, transportation, storage, and related costs in the energy cost adjustment surcharge. The utilities take no mark-up or profit on such fuel costs.

(Report Provided by Hawaiian Electric Industries)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 10:10 a.m. HST

Aiona Signs Law Making Monk Seal Harm a Felony in Hawai'i

HONOLULU — Lt. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona, Jr., as acting governor, today signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 2441, making it a felony to harm a Hawaiian monk seal, which is on the federal endangered list.

“Despite the protections provided by the federal Endangered Species Act, these animals continue to be at risk,” said Lt. Governor Aiona. “Hawai‘i is home to more than 300 endangered species, and all the people of Hawai‘i have an enormous responsibility to help protect our unique wildlife.”

This bill, which becomes Act 165, makes it a class C felony to intentionally or knowingly harass, harm or kill, among other things, an endangered or threatened species. The new law, which takes effect immediately, also imposes a fine of up to $50,000 for those who commit theses acts against a monk seal.

There are an estimated 1,100 monk seals in the Hawaiian Islands. With the population declining at a rate of 4 percent annually, biologists predict their numbers will dip below 1,000 in the next three to four years, making the Hawaiian monk seal one of the world’s rarest species.

In addition to low birth rates, intentional killings by humans have threatened the long-term survival of endangered Hawaiian monk seals. In 2009, a monk seal was intentionally shot and killed in Kaua‘i. The individual received a 90-day prison term and a $25 fine.

Numerous environmental groups testified in support of this measure, including the State Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaiian Humane Society, Hawaiian Monk Seal Response Team, Conservation Council of Hawai‘i, Save our Seals, Animal Rights Hawai‘i, Audubon Society, KAHEA-Hawaiian Environmental Alliance, Ocean Law and Policy Institute, Earthjustice, and Maui Tomorrow.

Eighty-five pieces of testimony from individuals were submitted in support of SB 2441, which had no opposition.

“This level of public concern and commitment is commendable,” said Lt. Governor Aiona. “Going forward, we will need everyone’s help in ensuring Hawai‘i’s monk seals are protected and allowed to propagate.”

For more information on monk seal protection, visit the Marine Conservation Biology Institute website at http://www.mcbio.org.

(Report Provided by the Office of Lt. Gov. James R. "Duke" Aiona, Jr.)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 6:40 a.m. HST

Hard-Hitting Anti-Meth Campaign Hitting Home

The Hawaii Meth Project's television ads on the dangers of crystal methamphetamine are being credited with increasing awareness among young adults.

A majority of Hawaii teenagers and a preponderance of young Hawaii adults like 19-year-old Camila Harris of Kaneohe see a huge risk in using methamphetamine even once—a double-digit increase over similar attitudes reported just last year, according to a survey by the Hawaii Meth Project to be released today.

"We realize the growing threat," said Harris, a Castle High School graduate who just finished her freshman year at the University of Hawaii. "When it comes to meth, it's really scary."

Along with her friends, Harris credits $1 million worth of television, radio and print ads that began airing last year for helping to shift island attitudes among young people regarding meth. And that was welcome feedback for Cindy Adams, executive director of the Hawaii Meth Project, which will start airing another series of graphic television commercials and ads beginning today.

The survey to be released today suggests the new media campaign will continue to make a dent in the attitudes of young people in a remote island state that nevertheless has one of the nation's worst meth problems, ranking behind just four other states in 2007.

Meth, especially in its smokable form, is considered highly addictive after just one use. It is a factor in 75 percent of all drug enforcement operations—more than all other drugs combined, according to the Hawaii Meth Project. And 48 percent of all drug-treatment admissions are meth-related, surpassing alcohol.

Meth abuse costs Hawaii $500 million annually, a price tag that includes costs for health care, foster care, treatment, incarceration and lost work time, according to a 2005 Rand Corp. study.

So the estimated $1 million annual cost for the Hawaii Meth Project's media campaign is a worthwhile investment, Adams said yesterday.

The second Hawaii Meth Use & Attitudes Survey found that 54 percent of Hawaii teens and 67 percent of young adults see great risk in taking meth once or twice. That is up 10 percentage points for each group from one year ago.

Having children talk to their parents about meth use is particularly important to David Barbour, a Kaneohe father of six girls, and he credits the graphic ads by the Hawaii Meth Project for changing attitudes.

"I'm hoping and believing that families are getting their acts together so their children won't grow up with that kind of environment," Barbour said. "The advertising or the marketing or whatever they're doing—you see some pictures of what meth will do to you, and it's obvious that attitudes are changing. They've done a phenomenal job of educating people."

The four new television commercials that begin airing today can be found at www.hawaiimethproject.org.

Like their predecessors, the graphic images help sear the negative impressions of meth use into the minds of young people like Harris, who called last year's campaign "frightening" and "scary."

The new commercials also feature young people whose lives and appearances are turned inside out from using methamphetamine.

One of them features a teenage boy who is introduced to meth by a group of older men, who teach the boy how to smoke "ice" for the first time.

"He says, 'I'm trying it just this once,'" Adams said, "and the older men all laugh."

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@staradvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 8, 2010 1:10 a.m. HST

Firefighters Still On Scene of Ma'alaea Fire

MAALAEA, Maui, Hawaii - Firefighters are monitoring a brush fire that is about a quarter-mile mauka of Honoapiilani Highway in the Maalaea area near an area known locally as the "utility road". The fire was reported at 10:00 p.m. Monday night. Because of darkness and the possibility of downed power lines which would be unsafe for personnel to travel through - the fire remains inaccessible tonight. The brush fire is in a remote area with difficult terrain. No traffic is affected at this time and no structures are reported to be in danger.

No other information is available at this time. No updates are expected until sometime after 12 noon today.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 7, 2010 1:40 p.m. HST

Governor, Delegation Attend 'Hawai'i Day' at 2010 World Expo

Today (Tuesday in China) is “Hawai‘i Day” at the USA Pavilion at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai. Governor Linda Lingle, legislative leaders, representatives from the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, the visitor industry and entertainers will officially kick off “Hawai‘i Week” at the Expo. The Expo is expected to attract more than 70 million visitors, 86 percent of whom will come from China.

Yesterday (Monday in China), Governor Lingle spoke to over 300 members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AMCHAM) at its Distinguished Speakers Series. The Governor covered a wide range of topics including Hawai‘i's progress in promoting clean energy, the status of direct flights from China to Honolulu, and the steps her Administration has taken to improve travel visa issuance procedures with the assistance of U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman. Governor Lingle was welcomed by Brenda Lei Foster, a former Hawai‘i resident who now serves as executive director of the Chamber, and Robert Roche, chairman of AMCHAM Shanghai.

The Governor was also a featured speaker at a forum hosted by the ELS American Education Center (ELSAEC) in Shanghai. Governor Lingle spoke to about 150 Chinese students about the benefits of studying at Hawai‘i’s colleges and universities In attendance representatives from the University of Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Pacific University and Chaminade. ELSAEC has been in existence for a little over three years and has increased the number of students it helps place in the United States from 600 in its first year to an estimated 6,000 this coming year.

On Sunday (China time), Governor Lingle was the guest of honor at a reception hosted by the Consul-General of Japan, Mr. Yutako Yokoi and his wife. The reception was held in a turn-of-the-century mansion in the former French section of historic Shanghai. The Governor and Consul-General discussed Japan-America-China relations, and the role Hawai‘i is playing in strengthening the diplomatic and economic ties between these three nations.

Also on Sunday, Hawai‘i Week festivities at the World Expo got underway with hula performances by members of Kumu Hula Blaine Kia’s Ka Laua‘e Foundation.

Additional updates and photos of the Governor’s economic mission to China can be found on Governor Lingle’s website at www.hawaii.gov/gov.

(Report Provided by the Office of Governor Linda Lingle)

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NEWS FLASH - June 7, 2010 11:40 a.m. HST

UHMC Receiving More than $3M for Job Training Programs

HONOLULU - Maui College will receive more than $3 million to fund job training programs for more than 500 people in rural communities on five islands, U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye announced today.

The University of Hawaii’s Maui College will receive $3,996,000 over two years to fund workforce development programs on Hawaii, Kauai, Lanai, Molokai and Maui.

The funds come through a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor.

“The working families of rural Hawaii have experienced significant hardship during the current economic downturn. Communities already besieged by unemployment have been forced to recover at a time when jobs are scarce and state and county government are slashing services. I know these funds will help those living in rural communities as they work to acquire the skills needed to improve their professional prospects," said Senator Inouye.

The training programs that will be offered on the five islands include: engineering, construction, fiber optics, solar energy, weatherization, dental imaging, aquaponics, hybrid car repair and information technology.

More than 500 people will benefit from the programs. Maui College will work with local businesses and community partners to address the needs on each island.

(Report Provided by the University of Hawai'i Maui College)

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NEWS FLASH - June 7, 2010 11:20 a.m. HST

Mandatory County Fair Concession Meeting Set for June 16

WAILUKU - A mandatory meeting for all current food concessionaires will be held on Wednesday, June 16, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center's HAYNES Meeting Room (ROOM CHANGE). All rules and regulations will be discussed by the Maui Fire Prevention Bureau, State Health Department officials, Plumbing Department officials, The Gas Co. (provider of propane for the Maui County Fair) and Wasa Electric Co. (regarding electrical needs). Food concession contracts will also be handed out at this meeting. For more information about food concessions, call Ryan Shibano at 871-1134.

The 88th Maui County Fair will be "Celebrating Community" and held Thursday, September 30 through Sunday, October 3. The highly anticipated annual event brings the entire community together to enjoy an alcohol-free, smoke-free and drug-free family-oriented educational event with plenty of entertainment, delicious local food, and fun! This year especially, it provides the people of Maui with a well-deserved break from the current economic times and priceless quality time for family and friends. The Maui County Fair is the primary source of funding for many of Maui's nonprofit and community organizations. It relies entirely on corporate or local business sponsorships, local donations, and volunteers for support.

For information about the Maui County Fair contact Managing Director Sherri Grimes at 280-6889 or visit mauicountyfair.com or twitter.com/mauicountyfair on the web.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Fair)

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NEWS FLASH - June 7, 2010 7:30 a.m. HST

Hawaiian Launches Oakland-Maui Service

HONOLULU – Hawaiian Airlines today completed the launch of its first-ever, nonstop daily flights between Oakland and Maui, adding a significant boost in air seats this summer from the East Bay for Maui’s visitor industry.

“Travel demand is strong for Maui and we’re proud to be providing these summer flights in support of Maui’s visitor industry and the island’s economy,” said Glenn Taniguchi, senior vice president for marketing and sales. “We are offering some great airfares and travel packages throughout summer to boost interest in a special Maui vacation experience.”

Hawaiian designed its Oakland-Maui flight schedule to make it especially appealing to East Bay travelers, allowing them to enjoy a first Maui afternoon upon arrival, along with a full day on island before departing for home. Flight #23 departs Oakland daily at 12:20 p.m. and arrives on Maui at 2:20 p.m. Return Flight #24 departs Maui daily at 9:35 p.m. and arrives in Oakland the following morning at 5:30 a.m.

Hawaiian is operating the Oakland-Maui flight with its wide-body Boeing 767-300 aircraft that seats up to 264 passengers. To make the Maui experience even more enjoyable, passengers are treated to the hospitality of Hawaiian’s distinctive and award-winning “Hawaii Starts Here” onboard service, showcasing the culture, music, natural beauty, and people of Hawaii throughout the flight.

Hawaiian is offering the Oakland-Maui flight daily through September 6, 2010, adding more than 24,000 new seats to Maui’s peak summer travel season.

Tickets can be booked online at HawaiianAirlines.com, by calling Hawaiian’s reservations department toll-free at (800) 367-5320, or through any professional travel agent.

(Report Provided by Hawaiian Airlines)

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NEWS FLASH - June 7, 2010 6:40 a.m. HST

EPA, Maui County At Odds Over Water Quality Tests

WAILUKU » Federal environmental officials and Maui County leaders are at odds over an order by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to conduct water sampling tests off West Maui.

The federal agency ordered the county in January to conduct the tests, saying two studies found "substantial evidence" that waste water injected into the ground was seeping out of subsea springs off Kaanapali.

The order came as the federal agency continued to review the county's application to renew underground injection control permits for waste-water injection wells.

Department of Environmental Management Director Cheryl Okuma said the county was in talks with the EPA about its order to study the wells' impacts.

County officials had several concerns about the order, including the cost of the tests, which could run $1 million or more, according to Okuma.

"We're still in the process of discussion" to determine the scope of the studies, Okuma said. "We haven't agreed to anything at this point because we need to know what we're talking about."

But an EPA official said the county has not been responsive enough, noting that the county has missed two deadlines set by the agency for a tracer study and water sampling plan.

"I can't say I'm pleased by the response of the county," said David Albright, manager of the EPA's Ground Water Office. "We asked the county to conduct these studies. We provided them certain dates to submit information to us and start work. Obviously some of these dates have now passed, and we have not gotten from the county what we asked them to provide."

Albright added it was not unusual for the EPA to engage in discussions with an agency or municipality over its orders.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 6, 2010 10:10 p.m. HST

Ma'alaea Brush Fire 90 Percent Contained

MA'ALAEA - A brush fire that was reported at 6:32 a.m today was 90 percent contained shortly after 7:30 tonight. The fire was located mauka, above the intersection of Honoapiilani Highway and Kuihelani Highway on the Wailuku side of a road locally known as the "power line road". Air One and Air Two were dispatched to provide support to ground crews.

According to Battalion Chief James Kino, access was difficult through the terrain and fire personnel were shuttled to the scene via an all terrain vehicle. Firefighters from the Kahului and Wailuku fire stations were aided by personnel from the department's specially trained wildland firefighting crew. Air support ended at approximately noon.

In addition to utilizing an all terrain vehicle to transport firefighters through the terrain, the fire department's mini-tanker was able to access the area. For approximately 80 percent of the perimeter work, fire fighters used hand tools.

No injuries are reported and no structures burned. The fire burned an estimated 5 acres with no disruption to highway traffic. Firefighters will monitor the fire through the night. Refreshments for the fire crews were provided by the American Red Cross-Maui.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 6, 2010 8:35 a.m. HST

Popular Refrigerator Rebate Program Nears End

The federally funded refrigerator rebate program offering $250 to Hawai'i consumers who replace old fridges with new energy efficient models is winding down and likely will be exhausted in another week or two.

Since the initiative was launched May 24, local consumers have purchased an estimated 7,510 refrigerators qualifying for the mail-in rebate, according to administrators of the program.

An estimated 875 rebates were still available as of Friday, though the supply allocated to retailers on Kaua'i was exhausted May 29.

"It went well over here," said Ray Mierta, energy services supervisor for Kaua'i Island Utility Cooperative, which is running the rebate program on the Garden Island. "The majority (of rebates) went on that (May 24) Monday morning. Home Depot and Sears had people lined up at four in the morning."

As of Friday, there still were rebates available on O'ahu, Maui and the Big Island, though some retailers had little or no rebate forms left.

Generally, more rebate forms were distributed to higher-volume retailers, and smaller stores are the ones that now have the majority of rebates available, according to Derrick Sonoda, director of operations for Hawaii Energy, which is administering the program locally everywhere but Kaua'i.

Hawaii Energy plans to soon post a list of which retailers still have rebates available on its website at www.hawaiienergy.com/tradeup. A list of all participating retailers — 22 on O'ahu, six on the Big Island and five on Maui — is presently available on the site.

Sonoda said rebates won't be redistributed among retailers, and that he expects consumers will use up all the rebates. "The program should run its course," he said. "We're very happy. The program did what it was supposed to have done."

If all rebates are not exhausted, the program is scheduled to end June 23.

At Best Buy's two O'ahu stores, fridge sales have been brisk but rebates were still available on Thursday. "The response was awesome," said Best Buy general manager Shawn Troup. "People are excited because they're doing something good for the environment and they're getting a rebate check."

The program was modeled after last year's federally funded Cash for Clunkers program that provided rebates for buying more fuel-efficient automobiles, though federal officials left it up to states to pick which large appliances qualify.

The state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism used $2.5 million in federal stimulus funds to finance the appliance rebate program, which included costs for recycling and administrative expenses including marketing.

Local program officials decided that concentrating the program on fridges would have a big bang for the buck, helping Hawai'i become more energy independent, boosting business for retailers and helping consumers save money.

The state said fridges account for the largest portion of household energy bills after electric water heaters and air conditioners, and is marketing the program with the phrase "Trade Up For Cool Cash."

The state estimates that the program will save about 100,000 barrels of oil and 7 million pounds of carbon emissions over the life of the appliances if all the old fridges are replaced by energy-efficient models using 50 percent less energy.

A 10-year-old fridge uses 63 gallons of oil every year. A new fridge will save 28 gallons of oil annually, with the electricity cost savings ranging from $80 to $90 a year. The savings for consumers can add up to $1,700 to $2,000 over the lifetime of a fridge at present electricity rates — or more if rates rise.

At $250, the rebate can amount to 25 percent or more off the cost of a new moderately priced fridge meeting energy efficiency qualifications.

To qualify for the rebate, new fridges must meet certain Energy Star ratings. A list is available at energy star.gov. The old fridge must be working and be recycled through participating retailers, some of whom may include a charge for delivery and removal.

After the fridge rebate program ends, Hawai'i consumers will still be able to obtain rebates for new Energy Star qualified appliances, including fridges, under existing state programs. More information on those programs can be found at www.hawaiienergy.com for O'ahu, Maui County and Big Island residents, and at www.kiuc.coop for Kaua'i residents.

Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 6, 2010 8:05 a.m. HST

154-Year Run of Honolulu Advertiser Ends Today

Today's final edition of The Honolulu Advertiser ends a 154-year run that helped document and define the course of Island life from the days of the Hawaiian kingdom to the arrival of jets and the digital age.

Honolulu is now a one-newspaper town for the first time in its history. Like Seattle and Denver, cities that also lost newspapers as the global recession deepened, Honolulu will now adjust to life with only one thump on the front step, one headline peeking from the newsbox on the corner.

The death of The Advertiser came at 12:01 a.m. today after a decades-long newspaper war with its neighbor just makai on South Street, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

Mary T. Orthman, 65, of Waikiki, received her Advertiser every day between 2 and 3 a.m. and immediately began poring over every page. She was born on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and cannot reconcile that her birthday coincides today with the end of her beloved newspaper.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," she said. "You're all in my prayers and I love you and I thank you for all you have done."

The closing also marks the shutdown of one of Hawai'i's oldest and largest businesses. About 400 people will lose their jobs — most at The Advertiser, but also about 91 workers at the printing plant in Kane'ohe that produces the Star-Bulletin and MidWeek.

The surviving daily will debut as a broadsheet tomorrow with a new name that pays homage to both newspapers: the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

The company will employ about 474 workers — including 265 hired from the Advertiser, among them 28 editors, reporters, columnists and a photographer — and will be produced at the plant built by The Advertiser in Kapolei in 2004.

The Advertiser's landmark, 81-year-old News Building at 605 Kapi'olani Blvd., which has been on the market for five years, is now closed.

A skeleton crew of workers will spend the next several weeks cleaning it out, wrapping up The Advertiser's business operations and continue dismantling the old, greasy press that has sat quiet for the past six years.

For the people of the Islands, reading had always been a critical source of communicating the news of the day.

Long before Henry M. Whitney founded the Pacific Commercial Advertiser on July 2, 1856, Hawai'i had several newspapers that were printed in the Hawaiian language, including Ke Kumu Hawai'i, Ka Lama Hawai'i, Kumu Kamali'i, Ka Elele, Ka Nonanona and Ka Hae Hawai'i.

But for nearly the past 100 years, the two English-language dailies dominated Hawai'i's journalism landscape.

For much of their battle, The Advertiser and Star-Bulletin divided the news markets by morning and afternoon delivery as they took turns flirting with death as reading habits, ownership and the economy continued to shift.

MILLIONS IN LOSSES

The Advertiser was bleeding money in 1962 when a joint operating scheme was arranged with the Star-Bulletin, saving the morning paper.

In 1999, it was the Star-Bulletin that was close to extinction as the owner of the Advertiser — Gannett Co. Inc. — sought to buy out its owner. Community leaders, employee unions and public officials rallied to stop the shutdown of the weaker paper, and a lawsuit in federal court challenged its legality.

A veteran Canadian newspaper owner, David Black, stepped forward to buy the Star-Bulletin. And, since 2001, both newspapers have waged a bitter and financially draining war over circulation, advertising and influence.

Black said he has lost nearly $100 million on his Hawai'i operation. The Advertiser went from a profit margin of nearly 50 percent in 1993, when Gannett acquired it, to low single digits after the joint operating agreement broke up in 2001.

After a record year for revenue in 2006, The Advertiser, along with every other U.S. newspaper, saw its business fall off a cliff as the real estate market collapsed and dozens of big-spending advertisers like Circuit City, CompUSA and local car dealers closed or retrenched. Classified advertising, once a key source of profit, moved to free online sites. In less than three years, The Advertiser saw its annual revenue plummet by about 30 percent.

By 2009, the paper was barely breaking even, even after layoffs, buyouts and pay cuts.

When Gannett announced in February it was selling The Advertiser to Black and that the papers would be merged, there was no outcry, no court challenge and only muted protests from readers. The ubiquity of the Internet, with its infinite sources of free news and comment, had killed the argument that the loss of a newspaper would deprive the community of essential information, of another "voice."

"I didn't see it coming," said Richard Port, who fought to preserve two newspapers nine years ago under a group called Save Our Star-Bulletin. "I never thought that it would be The Advertiser that ended up dying."

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

The Advertiser produced stories and editorials that changed the shape of Hawai'i politics, business projects big and small — and individual lives.

Former Gov. Ben Cayetano grew up delivering The Advertiser in his Kalihi neighborhood, where, he said, it seemed that everyone preferred the morning daily over its afternoon rival, the Star-Bulletin.

"The Advertiser," Cayetano said, "was a very influential voice in a community like Kalihi."

In 2001, Advertiser Windward reporter Eloise Aguiar began telling the story of Lorrie-Ann Wiley, a 32-year-old, mother, wife and Hawai'i Air National Guardsman who was killed in a crash near Olomana Golf Links while driving to work at Hickam Air Force Base.

No one could identify the driver of the car that killed Wiley.

On the anniversary of Wiley's death, Aguiar wrote a story about how the investigation had stalled. In response, a witness came forward to identify Kam K. Williams as the driver of the Chrysler that collided with Wiley's Honda Civic. He is now serving 18 years in prison.

"Were it not for the excellent coverage provided by The Honolulu Advertiser, Kam Williams might never have been tied to the vehicle and he would have avoided prosecution for the death of Lorrie Wiley," the attorney for Wiley's family, Richard Fried, said last week.

In 1987, sports reporter Ann Miller wrote a profile of Suzanne Eagye, a senior on the last Rainbow Wahine team to win an NCAA volleyball championship. Miller's profile — under the headline, "Smiling Through The Years" — included a half-dozen photographs that captured Eagye's ever-present smile that had made her a fan favorite in Klum Gym.

A few days later, Tim Cox approached Eagye in Waikiki and said, "It's true what the paper says, you do have a beautiful smile," Eagye remembered last week. "We stood around talking for an hour and then he started going to my church. We never really dated. We were just good friends for a year and a half."

Twenty-one years later, Tim and Suzanne are raising four children on a 60-acre farm near Nashville. And Tim continues to carry a laminated copy of Miller's article in his guitar case.

"He's kept it all these years," Suzanne said. "I should thank you guys and especially Annie. She was a big part of it."

A WEDDING AT WORK

Tom Brislin, who now heads the University of Hawai'i's Academy for Creative Media, worked for The Advertiser from 1980 to 1990 in a variety of positions, including city editor.

He and his wife, Evelyn, were even married in the office of Advertiser editor Buck Buchwach on Dec. 15, 1986, "with newsroom and advertising staffers as witnesses," Brislin wrote last week in an e-mail from Berlin. "As far as I know, it was the only newsroom wedding in Advertiser history."

The 1970s and 1980s were a time when investigative reporting defined the character of the paper.

After a series of groundbreaking reports on organized crime in the 1970s, Advertiser owner Thurston Twigg-Smith and editor George Chaplin poured even more time and manpower into rooting out stories describing influence peddling and public corruption.

Jim Dooley documented how public officials enriched themselves by getting in on lucrative development projects, then made decisions on zoning and permits favorable to their investments. He exposed wrongdoing at the Downtown development project named Kukui Plaza that led to bribery charges against Mayor Frank Fasi. And Dooley was one of the first reporters to document questionable dealings at Hawai'i's largest private landowner, the Bishop Estate, now known as Kamehameha Schools.

Twigg-Smith, now 88, had learned the family business by working in nearly every aspect of The Advertiser's operations, including a stint as managing editor in the 1950s, and stood behind his reporters.

"I loved that part," he said. "I was hooked."

Under Twigg-Smith, The Advertiser had gone from certain death in the early 1960s to overtaking the Star-Bulletin in circulation.

By the early 1990s, however, there was no heir who wanted to take over the family newspaper and Twigg-Smith sold The Advertiser to Gannett for $250 million.

But today represents a moment in Hawai'i history that Twigg-Smith never envisioned: The final edition of The Honolulu Advertiser.

"Here's a case where one newspaper has two-to-one circulation advantage and obviously the people voted for The Advertiser," Twigg-Smith said.

"So I never thought I would see the day that The Advertiser closes its doors."

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 6, 2010 7:25 a.m. HST

Rainbow Wahine Finally End Unprecedented Run

OKLAHOMA CITY - On a sweltering night in Oklahoma, the Hawaii softball team's unprecedented postseason run finally ran out of steam.

Out of the 290 schools that play Division I softball, 285 had completed their seasons before Hawaii took the field yesterday for its 3:46 p.m. Hawaii time game against Arizona.

The season ended 2 hours and 12 minutes later when Arizona's Kenzie Fowler recorded the last of her 13 strikeouts to cap the Wildcats' 5-1 win in a Women's College World Series elimination game.

"I just want to thank this team for taking me on the journey of a lifetime," Hawaii head coach Bob Coolen said. "It was an incredible ride this year. It was unbelievable.

"Twenty-eight days on the road with these ladies and not once did they falter. They played to their best. Today was just too much to overcome."

WOMEN'S COLLEGE WORLD SERIES
Double elimination

Yesterday
» Florida 5, Missouri 0, Missouri eliminated
» Arizona 4, Washington 3, Washington eliminated
» Georgia 3, Florida 2, Florida eliminated
» Arizona 5, Hawaii 1, Hawaii eliminated

Today
» UCLA (47-11) vs. Georgia (50-12), 7 a.m. (ESPN)
» Tennessee (49-13) vs. Arizona (50-12), 9:30 a.m. (ESPN)
» UCLA vs. Georgia, 1 p.m.* (ESPN2)
» Tennessee vs. Arizona, 3:30 p.m.* (ESPN2)

*—UCLA and Tennessee need one win today to advance to the best-of-three championship series, which begins tomorrow; Georgia and Arizona need two. If only one rematch is necessary, it will be played at 1 p.m.

Hawaii (50-16) opened its first WCWS appearance with a win over Missouri on Thursday, then fell into the losers bracket by falling to UCLA on Friday. The Wahine hadn't suffered back-to-back losses since February in the Cathedral City Classic, the second loss coming to Arizona back then as well.

Fowler, a freshman, had earned a complete-game win over defending national champion Arizona earlier yesterday to end the Huskies' season. She then knocked Hawaii out of the double-elimination bracket by limiting the Wahine to two hits before a WCWS record crowd of 9,080.

The Wildcats (50-12) advance to the final four to face Tennessee today, needing to win twice to reach the championship series.

In two appearances against UH this season, Fowler surrendered a total of four hits to the Wahine, three of them home runs.

Hawaii's lone run of last night's game came on a homer to left by Traci Yoshikawa to lead off the third inning, the last of UH's NCAA record 158. UH managed six runs over its three games in Oklahoma City, all of the scoring coming on homers, with Yoshikawa and Alex Aguirre hitting two each.

"I was studying her from the beginning since I'm the ninth batter," Yoshikawa said of Fowler. "She was going inside and that's what I've been struggling with. I was looking for it and she put it right there."

But the Wahine could muster little else against Fowler, and the Wildcats offense pounced on every opportunity.

Their speed propelled them to a 1-0 lead in the first as the top three hitters in the order bunted. When K'Lee Arredondo laid down the third bunt, UH pitcher Stephanie Ricketts' throw to first was wild, allowing Brittany Lastrapes to score from second with the game's first run.

After Yoshikawa tied it in the third, Arizona reclaimed the lead on Arredondo's RBI single and Stacie Chambers' sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning. The Wildcats added two more in the fifth when they loaded the bases with two out and Lauren Schutzler hit a smash that got through the UH infield.

UH freshman Kaia Parnaby relieved Ricketts (30-10) and struck out five over the final 2 1/3 innings. But Fowler struck out eight of the final 10 batters she faced to end UH's season.

"We just couldn't catch up," Coolen said. "Yesterday it was the screwball, today we just couldn't catch up. We weren't attacking the ball. ... We just weren't the same team that went out during the season and attacked the ball."

The loss ended a season in which the Rainbow Wahine offense shattered NCAA, Western Athletic Conference and school records in making the program's deepest postseason run in its history.

Afterward, the players hung around outside the right-field fence signing autographs for new fans in the Midwest who seemed to gravitate to the team through the week, perhaps not quite ready to start the trek back to Hawaii despite spending nearly a month on the road.

"You can't deny that this team is great," UH first baseman Amanda Tauali'i said. "It's been a great run, and you can't close out your senior year any better than this. It's been my dream to be at the world series and here we are and we did it as a team."'

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Bulletin)

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NEWS FLASH - June 6, 2010 6:35 a.m. HST

New Law Prohibits Vegetation From Blocking Beach Access

A new law prohibits property owners from using vegetation to block access to Hawaii beaches.

Gov. Linda Lingle signed the measure, HB 1808, last week.

It requires the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to maintain beach transit corridors by prohibiting landowners from using plants to interfere with those paths.

Notices will be given to property owners adjacent to the corridors if vegetation from their properties blocks access to the shoreline.

The department can enforce the law if the vegetation is not cleared within 21 days.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Bulletin)

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NEWS FLASH - June 5, 2010 3:20 p.m. HST

Last Edition of The Advertiser Put to Bed

Food, memories and good wishes continued to pour into The Advertiser newsroom today as the staff prepared to put the state's largest newspaper "to bed" for the final time.

Reporters, editors and photographers continued to dump notebooks, reports, books and business cards, uncovering desktops that had not been uncluttered in years.

And former staffers straggled in to witness the end of The Advertiser after 154 years of publishing.

Long-time readers continued to call into the newsroom, still unable to comprehend what was happening following the sale by The Advertiser's owner, Gannett Corp. Inc. to David Black, the owner of the rival Star-Bulletin.

Black has hired 28 Advertiser journalists and will produce a new broadsheet newspaper starting Monday under the name Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

But today, the mood in The Advertiser was more reflective as one of the last newspaper wars in America came to an end.

As is typical of weekends at the paper, a skeleton crew is on duty today. They will cover today's news, post the last items on the website, write the final stories. Tonight, the presses in Kapolei will roll and tomorrow you'll read the result of all that labor — and love — the last Honolulu Advertiser.

In a much-appreciated gesture, Star-Bulletin photographer Craig Kojima just stopped by the newsroom to wish us well.

Staffers cleared out desks, and storage areas uncovering typewriter ribbons from days gone way past, rubber stamps with the names past staffers, downloaded phones lists from work computers and just came by to share a story about their life at the newspaper. Computer technicians hauled away computers to the new office, leaving dust bunnies the size of Texas on desks. And Advertiser managing editor Sandi Oshiro worked tirelessly helping to pack up years of old photographs stored in the newspaper's library.

Join us here for updates as the last day at The Advertiser unfolds.

And read more of this story in tomorrow's Honolulu Advertiser.

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 5, 2010 6:55 a.m. HST

Japanese Pilots Revisit Scenes of Attack on Pearl Harbor, Midway

FORD ISLAND — Sixty-eight years ago, after he had taken part in the attack on Pearl Harbor, Imperial Japanese Navy pilot Kaname Harada was on the tail of American pilots off Midway Atoll.

Harada's Zero fighter shot down five American torpedo bombers. But history was turning against Harada — and Japan.

Historian Dan King said Harada flew off the aircraft carrier Soryu, but that ship was then hit by U.S. aircraft and he was diverted to the carrier Hiryu for landing.

Harada jumped into the cockpit of another Zero, and shortly after takeoff, "he looks back and he sees the Hiryu explode," King said.

The four Japanese aircraft carriers that had attacked Pearl Harbor only six months before were sunk in the Battle of Midway, June 4-7, 1942.

After Midway, the U.S. took the offensive in the Pacific.

Harada, now 94, and nine other Japanese World War II aviators were on a different mission yesterday in Hawai'i — relating the history in the pivotal battle of the former enemies and now longtime allies.

The Japanese veterans and family members were guests of honor at the Pacific Aviation Museum-Pearl Harbor for a Midway Symposium.

"This is exactly what the museum is like — it's a living museum," said executive director Ken DeHoff. "We live in an era where the stories are still coming out of the mouths of the people who participated in them. So having a different side of the story here adds so much more depth and wealth to what we're doing at the museum."

More than 100 people, including World War II veterans from the United States and Japan, visited Midway Atoll to commemorate the 68th anniversary of the battle.

Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge is owned and administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The atoll is about 1,250 miles northwest of Honolulu.

The Japanese veterans followed up the commemoration at Midway with the visit to O'ahu.

There were an estimated 2,500 Japanese casualties in the Battle of Midway. The U.S. had approximately 300 losses.

Among the "Unabarakai Association" of enlisted fliers at the Pacific Aviation Museum yesterday, in addition to Harada, were Saburo Kawabe, Isamu Iwakura and Jiro Yoshida.

The latter three World War II veterans are all 85, officials said.

Speaking through an interpreter, Harada said he was a pilot in the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor.

King, the historian who went to Midway with the Japanese veterans, said the Zero fighter flown by Harada was heavily armed and had little pilot protection.

"It's a flying gun, is what it is," King said. The aircraft had 20mm cannons and 7.7mm machine guns, he said.

Harada had graduated from Imperial Navy flight school at the top of his class in 1937, and the achievement was so notable the emperor gave him a silver pocket watch, King said.

On Dec. 7, 1941, Harada was flying combat air patrol off of Hawai'i and did not participate in the attacks on O'ahu.

"He was mad when the assignments came out," King said, because the Japanese pilots favored attack over defense.

In the Battle of Midway, Harada downed the five American aircraft and then realized that both the aircraft carriers Soryu and Hiryu had been damaged, King said.

The pilot, low on fuel, ditched the aircraft in the wake of a Japanese destroyer, which didn't stop, King said. Harada spent four hours in the water with a float vest before he was spotted by another Japanese ship and plucked from the waves.

Harada was shot down and wounded at Guadalcanal, but not before amassing nine solo kills and 10 shared kills, King said.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 4, 2010 3:40 p.m. HST

Landfill Hours Cut Back by Budget Cutbacks

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii-The County of Maui Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announced today that due to budget constraints, reduced hours at all County landfills will be implemented beginning July 1, 2010. The reduction in service is being enacted to address a $1.7 million decrease in the County’s landfill operations budget for FY 2011.

"The County will need to reduce the operating hours of all county landfills in order to meet budget constraints," said Mayor Tavares, "constraints that include the removal of over $1 million dollars from the Department of Environmental Management's landfill operations budget by the County Council. We are grateful for the assistance of the United Public Workers Union as we worked to address union employee concerns and reach an important formal agreement regarding union employee work schedules."

"We are committed to find a way to make this work for the people of Maui County," said Dayton Nakanelua, director of the United Public Workers Union. "The County's Administration has made it clear that these fiscally challenging times will require all of us to collaborate together to find solutions we can all live with and UPW is pleased to be able to participate in that important dialogue and help reach a solution that can be mutually agreed upon."

"While we adjust operating hours to meet reduced funding, we must also comply with the legal requirements that govern landfill operations and avoid regulatory fines. We appreciate the public's understanding and cooperation as the new service hours are implemented beginning in July," said Cheryl Okuma, director of the County of Maui's Department of Environmental Management.

The new schedule includes a minimum of one weekend day open per week at each landfill, to help meet the needs of the public while reducing service days and hours to address budget constraints.

Beginning July 1, 2010 - which is the beginning of the County of Maui's new fiscal year - the new landfill hours of operation are as follows:

Central Maui Landfill
Monday - Saturday: 6 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Sunday: CLOSED

Olowalu Convenience Center
Monday - Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Sunday: CLOSED

Hana Landfill
Tuesday - Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Sunday & Monday: CLOSED

Molokai Landfill
Tuesday - Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Sunday & Monday: CLOSED

Lanai Landfill
Tuesday - Saturday: 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Sunday & Monday: CLOSED

For more information, call (808) 270-6153. To call toll-free from Molokai: 1-800-272-0117; from Lanai: 1-800-272-0125. Toll-free callers should request extension 6153. For general landfill information, visit www.mauicounty.gov/environmentalmanagement and click on “Solid Waste Management.”

(Report Provided by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 4, 2010 11:25 a.m. HST

Clunkers Stacking Up on Moloka'i

WAILUKU, Hawaii — Maui County is having a hard time finding a new metals recycler for Molokai.

Junked cars and old appliances have been piling up since the county shut down the island's only metals recycler in December for permit violations.

The director of the county's Department of Environmental Management, Cheryl Okuma, says the search has been hampered by the low price for metals on the international recycling market. She also points to the high cost of doing business on Molokai.

Okuma says the county now hopes to find a contractor able to operate the recycling facility on an intermittent basis, conducting regular "collection events" for scrap metal several times a year.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 4, 2010 10:15 a.m. HST

Haleakala Offering Free Admission This Weekend

The National Park Service and Haleakala National Park will be hosting several fee free days this year. June 5-6, August 14-15, September 25 (Public Lands Day) and November 11 (Veteran’s Day) will be fee free to all visitors at national park sites, national wildlife refuges, and certain Bureau of Land Management sites.

These fee free days are designed to invite new audiences to the parks and to encourage fitness and outdoor recreation.
The fee waiver will cover entrance, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. If you have any questions please call the park information line at (808) 572-4400.

(Report Provided by Haleakala National Park)

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NEWS FLASH - June 4, 2010 7:25 a.m. HST

Three Maui County Locations Among 20 Designated as 'Heritage Sites'

The Hawai'i Tourism Authority has launched a marketing campaign that includes new roadside markers at 20 points of interest across the state it has designated as Heritage Sites.

The campaign is an upgrade of the decades-old roadside "warrior" marker program run by the Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau, the agency HTA contracts to market Hawai'i in North America.

The new roadside markers combine the old red, brown and yellow warrior image with an additional panel that reads "Heritage Site of Hawai'i."

As well as the roadside markers, the campaign includes a guide on its website (www.gohawaii.com) in four languages with photos, descriptions and backgrounds of the various sites.

"Most of the sites have interpretive signage or tours to help educate visitors about the importance and history of the location," the HTA said on its website.

The sites:

Maui
• Haleakala National Park

• 'Iao Valley State Monument

Moloka'i
• Kalaupapa Lookout at the Pala'au State Park

Lana'i
• Kaunolu Village

O'ahu
• National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl

• World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument at Pearl Harbor

• Diamond Head State Monument

• 'Iolani Palace State Monument

• Ka Iwi State Scenic Shoreline, Makapu'u Trail

• Queen Emma Summer Palace

• Nu'uanu Pali State Wayside

Kaua'i
• Kilauea Lighthouse at Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge

• Waimea Canyon State Park

Big Island
• 'Akaka Falls State Park

• Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park

• Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

• Lapakahi State Historical Park

• Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park

• Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park

• Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site

(Report Provided by The Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - June 4, 2010 6:35 a.m. HST

Hawai'i Has Lowest Death-By-Gun Rate in Nation

Hawai'i has the lowest gun death rate in the country, according to figures released this week by the Washington-based Violence Policy Center.

The center, which defines itself as "a national educational organization working to stop gun death and injury," cites just-released data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control for the year 2007 — the most recent available — in drawing conclusions about gun death rates across the country.

Hawai'i's gun death rate in 2007 was 2.82 per 100,000 residents, center officials said. The next lowest gun death rate, 3.51, was in Rhode Island, followed by 3.63 in Massachusetts.

Louisiana had the nation's highest gun death rate, at 19.87, followed by Mississippi at 18.32 and Alabama at 17.62, according to the center.

The study also listed household gun ownership by percentage, with 9.7 percent of the homes in Hawai'i having one or more guns in the household — the lowest percentage in the country.

States such as Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama had the nation's highest gun ownership rates, at between 46 and 57 percent, and also had the highest gun death rates, the study found.

"The equation is simple: More guns lead to more gun death, but limiting exposure to firearms saves lives," Kristen Rand, the center's legislative director, said in a news release.

According to the Violence Policy Center's figures, the national gun death rate was 10.34 per 100,000 people in 2007.

"Each of the top-ranking states has lax gun laws and higher gun ownership rates. By contrast, states with strong gun laws and low rates of gun ownership had far lower rates of firearm-related death," the center's news release said.

Hawai'i's firearm ownership laws are among the most stringent in the country. Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha said that among other things, Hawai'i gun law requires a person to obtain a permit, issued by the chief of police, before he or she is allowed to buy a gun. The permitting process includes a background check and a 14-day waiting period.

"The Islands' low gun death rate should also be attributed to the people of Hawai'i who exemplify the aloha spirit not only in times of emergencies and disasters but throughout the year," Kealoha said.

He said HPD is proactive in seeking new gun legislation such as supporting a bill which would raise penalties for those who use airsoft replica pellet guns in terroristic threatening or robbery cases.

According to the Violence Policy Center, states with weak gun laws are those that "add little or nothing to federal restrictions and have permissive laws governing the open or concealed carrying of firearms in public.

"States with strong gun laws were defined as those that add significant state regulation in addition to federal law, such as restricting access to particularly hazardous types of firearms — for example, assault weapons, setting minimum safety standards for firearms and/or requiring a permit to purchase a firearm, and restrictive laws governing the open and concealed carrying of firearms in public," the center said in its report.

Dan Galanis, an epidemiologist with the Hawaii Department of Health's Injury Prevention and Control Program said Hawai'i has had the lowest firearm-related fatality rate of all 50 states during the five-year period of 2003-2007.

Galanis said Hawai'i's average gun death rate was 2.8 deaths per 100,000 residents during that period. The next-lowest state was Massachusetts, at 3.4 per 100,000 residents. The highest rates were Louisiana at 19.5 and Alaska, with 17.5, Galanis said.

Data in Hawai'i's death certificate database shows there were 180 firearms-related deaths from 2005 through 2009.

Galanis said the data shows an increasing trend in the annual number, from 28 in 2005 to 43 in 2009. Most of the 180 gun deaths — 131, or 73 percent — were deemed to be suicides, while 41 of them were homicides There were also two unintentional, or "accidental," shootings over the five-year period, Galanis said.

And, while gun-related suicides comprise the majority of firearm deaths in Hawai'i, they represent only 20 percent of the total number of suicides among Hawai'i residents. Hanging/suffocation was the most common means of suicide in Hawai'i, at 45 percent of the total. For the U.S. as a whole, 52 percent of suicides are committed by firearms, Galanis said.

Of the 127 homicides over the five-year period, 41, or 32 percent, involved the use of firearms, he said.

Most of the other homicides in Hawaii during 2005 through 2009 were the result of stabbings, at 31 percent, or beatings, 25 percent.

Firearms were used in about 68 percent of the homicides committed in the country as a whole, during that period, Galanis said.

Last year in Hawai'i, firearms were used in 10 homicides, 32 suicides and in one case in which a person was fatally shot by a police officer.

Reach David Waite at dwaite@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 4:05 p.m. HST

Upcountry Water Users Urged to Reduce Use

The Department of Water Supply is urging all residents and businesses in Kula, Ulupalakua, and Kanaio to use water for health and safety purposes only while the Department restores water to safe levels in the storage tanks.

Consumption for the Upcountry water system has averaged 8.6 million gallons per day (MGD) for the past two weeks and over 9 MGD for the past two days.

The Department is working to keep up with demand; however, the Waiohuli and Kamaole Tanks are at critically low levels at this time. If consumption does not drop, the area may run out of water. It is especially critical for Ulupalakua and Kanaio customers to cut back water usage to prevent another extended water outage.

The Department has placed portable water tankers at the Waiohuli Tank and at Ulupalakua Store for customers to fill up their own containers with potable water. DWS personnel are also out in the system checking for leaks and to ensure all valves are open and working properly.

Water levels are posted at www.mauiwater.org.

(Report Provided by the Maui County Department of Water Supply)

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 12:15 p.m. HST

Hundreds in Maui County Get Up Early to Set World Swim Lesson Record

It was early - very early - this morning when more than 200 Maui County residents took part in a worldwide attempt at setting the Guinness World Record for the largest swimming lesson. According to Mary Kielty, Aquatics Chief for Maui County, 154 Maui residents gathered and took the lesson at the Kihei Aquatic Cnter. Another 69 residents showed up and took part on Moloka'i - bring the county's contribution to the global attempt to 223.

The Maui County locations were among more than 100 worldwide - with lessons being taught at the exact same moment in places like Zambia, Kansas City, London and Dubai.

Now official word yet on the global count. We'll have video tonight on this week's edition of Maui TV News.

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 12 p.m. HST

County Awards $45,000 in Local Grants

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawaii—Mayor Charmaine Tavares announced today that the County of Maui has executed grants totaling $45,000 to Na Mao O Mu`olea and Tri-Isle Resource Conservation and Development Council, Inc..

Na Mamo O Mu`olea received $10,000 which will be used to aid in stewardship and education efforts related to cultural and natural resources of the County’s Mu’olea property.

Tri-Isle Resource Conservation and Development Council, Inc. received two grants: $10,000 for the purchase, lease or rental of equipment and materials necessary for farm plots and livestock pens at the Waikikena Farm and Learning Center; and $25,000 to be used to hold a five-day summit of agricultural leaders in the process of developing an Ecological Food and Energy and Water System business plan.

For more information, contact the County of Maui’s Office of Economic Development at (808) 270-7710.

(Report Provideed by the Maui County Office of Information)

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 10:10 a.m. HST

DLNR Celebrates Na Ala Hele Trail Program on Maui

KAHULUI – On June 5, 2010, the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Na Ala Hele, Trails and Access Program and outdoor enthusiasts across the country will celebrate the 18th annual National Trails Day celebration of America’s magnificent trail systems and its countless supporters and volunteers. More than 1,500 events will take place nationally including trail maintenance, hiking, paddling, bicycle riding, horseback riding, bird watching, running and trail celebrations.

On Maui, Na Ala Hele will be offering an interpretive guided hike for a limited number of hikers in the Kula Forest Reserve. Trail staff will four-wheel drive up to the Mamane Trail (approximately 7200’ elevation) and hike down to the Upper Waiohuli Trail (about 6800’ elevation). At that point the group will hike out to the edge of the forest (about 7500’ elevation) and then return to the Waipoli Road (about 6400’ elevation) for a pick-up. The moderate hike will be about 5 miles long at high elevation.

National Trails Day, an annual trail awareness program, is an opportunity for organizations and individuals to celebrate, appreciate and help preserve the 200,000+ miles of outdoor trails in our county. In Hawai‘i there are approximately 490 miles of public hiking trails and access roads. The public is encouraged to take part in an effort to promote healthy living, protect green space, educate adults and youth on the importance of trails, and instill excitement for the outdoors.

“Whether you’re an avid outdoor adventure seeker or new to our state’s network of trails, National Trails Day connects children and adults with nature so all may experience the joy and happiness that the outdoors elicits in each of us,” said Laura H. Thielen, DLNR chairperson.

Reservations are required and spaces are limited. For more information or to reserve a spot, call Torrie Nohara at: (808) 873-3508.

For information on the state-maintained forest hiking trails and hiking safety tips, go to www.hawaiitrails.org.

(Report Provided by the State of Hawai'i, Department of Land and Natural Resources)

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 7:10 a.m. HST

Maui County Council Considers Aquarium Fish Collection Ban

WAILUKU — Maui County's coral reefs and colorful fish are under assault by permitted collectors — and outside poachers — who capture the fish to sell to aquarium owners across the globe, according to two Maui County Council members who presented bills yesterday to regulate the industry.

Council members Wayne Nishiki and Mike Molina wrote companion bills aimed at bolstering a reef fish population that experts contend has shrunk by nearly 60 percent in the past 20 years.

The measures take different tacks: Molina's requires more humane treatment of aquarium fish; Nishiki's establishes an application and permit system to regulate the aquarium fish trade.

Current state law, which is enforced by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, requires fish collectors to obtain permits that allow the use of fine mesh nets or traps in capturing fish and that "they possess facilities to and can maintain fish and other aquatic life alive and in reasonable health."

Nishiki chairs the council's Public Services Committee that began reviewing the measures yesterday. The panel deferred action on the bills for two weeks.

During public testimony, the bills drew both support and fire.

Robert Wintner, owner of the Snorkel Bob's chain of dive shops, was among those in favor of county regulation.

"If we fail now, reef recovery will support a greedy few who sell Maui's soul to Mainland hobbyists for chump change," he said. "An aquarium fish leaves about $4 in Maui County but retails on the Mainland for $50 on up."

One of the commonly taken reef fish for aquariums is the yellow tang, which feeds on reef algae, he said.

On the other side of the debate, tropical fish collectors and owners called the bills draconian and unnecessary. They contended that Maui County only accounts for 2 percent of the tropical fish collection industry in Hawaii.

Others said that collecting reef fish for aquariums disregards Native Hawaiian cultural respect for fish and threatens the visitor industry, which draws people to the Islands, in part, to see colorful reef fish while snorkeling or diving.

About 30 people came out testify. Many were in favor of regulation, but even among those folks, several were not satisfied with the wording of the bills and asked for amendments.

"What's it gonna cost? Tell us in dollars and cents," said aquarium hobbyist Bill Blietz.

He said passing the bills would require setting up an enforcement and permitting infrastructure in a time of deficit budgets. He said that while everyone wants to protect the reefs, the measures go too far.

"Is the county going to hire aquarium police?" he asked. "Stay outta my family's aquariums."

Reach Chris Hamilton at chamilton@mauinews.com.

(Report Provioded by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 3, 2010 6:40 a.m. HST

Education Officials Hope 'Improvements' Attract Federal Dollars

Hawai'i education officials believe the recent elimination of public school furloughs, revisions to the state's charter school laws and the state's participation in national common education standards have bolstered the state's chances to garner some $75 million in federal grant money.

Only two states — Delaware and Tennessee — emerged as winners in the first round of the federal Race to the Top competition in March. But Hawai'i officials say the state's improved application and mathematical odds are in the state's favor as round two of the application begins.

Hawai'i was among 35 states that submitted applications to the U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday for some $3.4 billion in federal education grant money. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced this week that 10 to 15 states should expect to be selected as winners based on their state's plans for education reform.

The U.S. DOE is expected to review applications over the summer and will announce winners by the end of September.

"This time, I think we've made a lot of progress in terms of solidifying our plans. We were able to address all of the questions that were raised by the evaluators in the first round," said Kathy Mata- yoshi, Hawai'i's interim superintendent of schools. "The quality and depth of our plan is much higher."

Federal reviewers made no mention of the Hawai'i public school system's recent teacher furlough and budget woes in the state's first application for Race to the Top. Still, most state and education officials believe those issues had lowered the state's chances for garnering federal grant money.

Matayoshi said the teacher furlough blemish is removed from the state's new application just as many states have begun to consider or even implement teacher layoffs or deeper education cuts.

"Because of the timing, we were able to include the fact that furlough Fridays are over for the coming school year. A lot of other states and cities are now starting to furlough their teachers," she said.

On its initial application, the state lost a significant number of points in the area of charter schools, especially in the area of oversight and the state's cap on the number of schools that can be chartered in the state.

New charter school legislation passed by lawmakers in the session that ended in April and signed into law last week by Gov. Linda Lingle should improve the state's application in this area, Matayoshi said.

CHARTER SCHOOLS

Under the new law, the Charter School Review Panel may authorize up to three new startup charters — the previous law had said only one — for each existing charter that has received a three-year or longer accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges or a comparable accreditation authority. Charter school officials had lobbied legislators to eliminate the state's cap on charter schools entirely.

Federal reviewers of the state's Race to the Top application had said that the state's oversight of charter schools appeared weak. According to one federal reviewer, the state neglects to hold charter schools responsible for student achievement, particularly when determining whether a charter school should be renewed.

The new law changes that by requiring that charters be reauthorized by the review panel no later than four years after the initial issue of a charter and every six years after that.

Hawai'i may still face a challenge in proving that charter schools and regular schools are equally funded, also a requirement under Race to the Top. For years charter school officials have argued that charters are underfunded by the state, especially in the area of facilities.

This year, charters received $6,258 per student, while the per-pupil dollar amount for regular DOE schools is estimated at $6,984, if only state general fund allocations are considered.

Other factors make comparisons difficult, though.

For example, the dollar amount for regular DOE schools includes special education services provided to charter schools by the state. If federal funds and hurricane relief fund money are added in, the per-pupil allocation is about $9,522 for regular DOE schools.

Matayoshi said the state's participation in the national Common Core Standards movement will garner the state significant points. While 48 states have committed to implementing the common standards in English and math, so far only Hawai'i and Maryland have officially adopted the standards.

TEACHING STANDARDS

Matayoshi said that the state's current standards in core subject areas mirror the new rigorous national standards that are meant to be internationally competitive.

Common Core Standards will take effect in the 2012 school year and will mean that the majority of school districts in the country will, for the first time, be teaching based on the same expectations.

Hawai'i also was among five states to receive an "A" rating in a recent Harvard study on state education standards and their alignment to national expectations and the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, the only standardized test that is currently comparable across state lines.

Most states received "C" ratings on their proficiency standards and one state — Tennessee, chosen as a recent winner in the first round of Race to the Top — received an "F" for its content standards' alignment to national benchmarks.

"We really are not looking at a major change in our standards themselves. We already had high standards and this validates that," Matayoshi said.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 2, 2010 4:55 p.m. HST

Accident Stalls Traffic on Pali

(Editor's Note: Traffic Flow Resumed at 5:20 p.m.)

Maui Police report that an accident along the Pali on Honoapi'ilani Highway at 4:40 this afternoon has blocked one lane of traffic. Officers on the scene are alternating traffic through the scene. No word on the cause of the accident or the extent of any injuries. No estimate was provided on when traffic will be flowing again.

(Information Provided by the Maui County Police Department)

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NEWS FLASH - June 2, 2010 3:15 p.m. HST

New Law Requires Insurers to Cover Colorectal Cancer Screening

HONOLULU — Gov. Linda Lingle has signed legislation requiring health insurers to cover colorectal cancer screening tests.

Lingle approved the measure, SB 2599, on Wednesday.

The bill notes that more than one-third of deaths from colorectal cancer could have been avoided if regular colorectal screenings had been conducted after the age of 50.

Starting in March 2011, insurers must at least partially pay for screenings, and to inform their customers about the risks associated with undiagnosed colorectal-cancer and the availability of the tests.

Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, the Hawaii Association of Health Plans and the American Cancer Society supported the legislation.

(Report Provided by The Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - June 2, 2010 2:45 p.m. HST

OHA Appeals to Court for Past Due Enforcement

HONOLULU — The Office of Hawaiian Affairs has asked the state Supreme Court to require the Legislature to address $200 million in past due public land trust revenue claims.

OHA said Wednesday that OHA and the Lingle administration entered into a settlement agreement that resolved the claims in 2008.

The revenues are for the state's use of ceded lands, such as airports, hospitals and the Hawaii Housing Authority.

According to OHA, court decisions in 2001 and 2006 mandated the Legislature address the claims. It says its proposals submitted during the 2008, 2009 and 2010 legislative sessions were rejected.

OHA's chief executive officer, Clyde Namuo, called going to the Supreme Court on Wednesday "a means of last resort."

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 2, 2010 6:40 a.m. HST

Economy Improving - Yet Bankruptcies Increase

Recent improvements in Hawai'i's economy failed to put the brakes on bankruptcies last month.

In May, 336 people petitioned to discharge debts through the bankruptcy process, up by more than a third compared to the same month a year earlier.

"It's hard to see any green shoots out there," said Jean Christensen, a Honolulu bankruptcy attorney.

"It's hard to be optimistic about the economy from my perspective."

She said clients are still calling for help because they've been laid off, can't get jobs paying as much as the one they lost or are having problems making car and mortgage payments.

That includes people dealing with mortgage arrears that are up to a year delinquent.

Others are facing possible wage garnishment after failing to make car payments on $10,000 or more still owed on their auto loans.

People who have jobs but are experiencing financial difficulties also are coming in because they are being threatened with wage garnishments for unpaid car loans, Christensen said.

"I think there's so much uncertainty out there."

It may be that bankruptcy filings continue to increase as the state's economy improves because insolvencies often trail economic recovery. From that perspective, bankruptcies are often called a lagging economic indicator.

The figures for May, while an increase on a year-over-year basis, do show a glimmer of hope in that the 336 filed last month were the lowest since February.

The figures also show:

• O'ahu bankruptcies were also the lowest in three months at 181.

• Bankruptcies on all islands were higher than a year earlier.

• There were 57 bankruptcy petitions filed by Big Island residents, 10 more than in April.

• Maui's total of 76 was the highest total in five months.

• Kaua'i residents filed 22 bankruptcies.

Reach Greg Wiles at gwiles@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 3:50 p.m. HST

High Winds Expected Through Tomorrow Morning

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has EXTENDED the WIND ADVISORY for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA in effect until 6 a.m. Wednesday.

A Wind Advisory means that winds of 30 mph are expected.

2. EFFECTS: East winds across the summits of Haleakala will be 25 to 40 mph with higher gusts.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 1:40 p.m. HST

Non-Profit Seeks to Establish Charter School in Keanae

KEANAE — A fledgling nonprofit has set a goal to establish a charter school in Keanae.

The group includes parents and grandparents of Keanae and Waialua schoolchildren who endure a one-hour bus ride on weekdays along narrow and winding Hana Highway to reach Hana High and Elementary School.

Keanae School stopped holding classes in 2005, but it wasn't until this year that the Board of Education deemed the campus officially closed and voted to accept a recommendation to consolidate Keanae School with the Hana School campus.

State Department of Education officials estimate the decision saves at least $32,000 a year, plus close to a million dollars in improvements needed to reopen Keanae School.

Meanwhile, "Ka Waianu o Haloa" registered as a nonprofit with the mission to open a charter school for children living in East Maui. The name refers to the cold water of Haloa, a source that helps the community grow and prosper.

The nonprofit's mission, found in a development brochure, is to "facilitate the development of rigorous cultural and educational standards and to foster lifelong learners.

"We will strive to create a safe learning environment in which students are encouraged to explore and express their ideas as self-directed learners."

Founder and group president Sommer "Kehau" Kimokeo, the mother of three children ages 8, 6 and 1, said her group had begun to draft a detailed implementation plan on its vision for a charter school.

It will take at least a year and a couple of months, Kimokeo said, but eventually the group hopes to use the Keanae School campus as the grounds for its new charter school.

Kimokeo said the ultimate goal would be to build a K-12 campus, but realistically Ka Waianu o Haloa would probably start with a K-3 or K-5 program.

By the end of this year, the group hopes to work out a lease agreement with the state to use the Keanae School facility to run health programs and community activities for all ages.

"Our greatest need right now is funding," Kimokeo said, adding that her group knows it needs to raise money to make improvements to the deteriorating buildings.

The one-room schoolhouse is an old wooden-frame, termite-damaged structure in need of substantial repair. A 2009 DOE report estimated costs for overdue repairs and maintenance at $1,032,000 and placed a price tag for additional deferred facility projects at $311,000.

Hana High and Elementary School Principal Rick Paul said he supports the establishment of a charter school in Keanae. Paul served as the first principal of Kihei Charter High School when it opened several years ago.

"I'm always a person who supports choices. I've never thought one size fits all in education," Paul said. "I wish them luck, and it really does expand opportunities for people in this area."

Former Maui County Council Member Bob Carroll, who served as the chairman of the task force on the school consolidation, said he was sorry to see the DOE close Keanae School but glad that the new nonprofit was seeking a new alternative.

"It's about as good as we can get here," Carroll said, adding that he would have preferred to see Keanae School reopened. "We'll take what we can get."

Carroll said he also was glad to see that DOE officials have decided to give Ka Waianu o Haloa until December before taking action on what to do next with the Keanae School campus.

Kimokeo said her group will continue to work on its proposed school through the next several months and will be appealing to the public for monetary support. For more information, contact Kimokeo at 248-7403 or e-mail: kwoh7@gmail.com.

Reach Caludine San Nicholas at csannicholas@mauinews.com.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 9:50 a.m. HST

Centaurus Enters Hawai'i Summer Night Sky

Two of the brightest stars in the sky can be found in the constellation Centaurus. Visible in the southern sky after sunset throughout June, Centaurus is a half-man, half-horse appearing to leap over the Southern Cross. Alpha Centauri and Beta Centauri make up the front hoofs of the centaur. To locate these stars, find the Southern Cross low on the southern horizon, then look eastward for two nearby bright stars.

Although we see them as individual stars, Alpha Centauri and Beta Centauri are actually multiple star systems. Alpha Centauri, also called Rigil Kentaurus, consists of three stars bound together by gravity. The Beta Centauri system includes two stars, the brighter of which is known as Hadar.

Alpha Centauri is the closest star to our solar system. The light we see from Alpha Centauri was generated 4.39 light-years ago. When we look at any star, we are actually looking into the past.

Beta Centauri is much farther away at a distance of about 526.07 light-years. Although the stars appear to be at a fixed distance, in reality Beta Centauri is more than 100 times more distant that Alpha Centauri.

Astronomers measure the brightness of stars using a magnitude system. A star with a lower magnitude is brighter than a star with a higher magnitude. Alpha Centauri's apparent magnitude is -0.04. Beta Centauri is slightly dimmer with an apparent magnitude of 0.59. When you consider the stars' magnitudes in comparison with their relative distances, it becomes clear that Beta Centauri is putting out much more energy than Alpha Centauri.

Partial Lunar Eclipse

Very early on June 26, Hawaii observers will be treated to a partial eclipse of the moon. Partial lunar eclipses are not as dramatic as total lunar eclipses where the moon turns red, but they are still worth staying up late to observe. The partial eclipse starts on June 26 at 12:16 a.m. Through the next hour and a half, observers will see the full moon darken until only half of it is visible. Then Earth's shadow will slide off the moon gradually until the full moon is visible again by 3 a.m.

Unlike solar eclipses, you do not need any special filters to view the lunar eclipse. Anyone in Hawaii with clear skies should be able to see it.

Summer Solstice

On June 21 at 1:28 a.m., Earth reaches a point in its orbit around the sun known as a solstice. Since Hawaii is in the Northern Hemisphere, this is our summer solstice. People south of the equator celebrate this day as their winter solstice. As the longest day of the year, the summer solstice is celebrated by many cultures.

Reach Nancy Alima Ali at nancyali@hawaii.edu.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Star-Bulletin)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 9:20 a.m. HST

Kihei Fires Under Investigation, 'intentional'

Maui fire and police officials are investigating two suspicious fires at condominium and apartment complexes Saturday night in Kihei.

"These fires are suspected to be related and intentionally set," Fire Department Battalion Chief Frank Tam said.

No one was injured in the fires, which caused $75,000 in estimated damage to the buildings and their contents, Tam said.

The first fire was reported just before 9 p.m. at the Southpointe condominium and apartment complex at 482 Kenolio Road. Tam said neighbors had the fire under control in about 20 minutes.

The second fire, at an apartment at 160 Keonekai Road in the Keonekai Villages complex, was reported about 10 minutes after the first fire was deemed under control by firefighters, Tam said. It took them about 15 minutes to knock the flames down, he said.

Police on Sunday did not say whether authorities had made any arrests or if they had a suspect.

Meanwhile, the fires remain under investigation by the fire department, Tam said.

The owners of both apartments were displaced but are staying with friends, Tam said.

Firefighters from the Kihei, Kahului and Wailea fire stations responded to the blazes.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 7:50 a.m. HST

Wind Advisory Up for Strong Winds Near Summit

1. EVENT: The National Weather Service in Honolulu has issued a WIND ADVISORY for the SUMMIT of HALEAKALA in effect until 6 p.m. this evening.

A Wind Advisory means that winds of 30 mph are expected.

2. EFFECTS: Winds over the summit area of Haleakala have increased and will be blowing from the east at 30 mph with higher gusts.

3. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION. SECURE ANY LOOSE OBJECTS THAT MAY BECOME AIRBORNE OR MOVE THEM INDOORS.

4. INFORMATION: Maui County Civil Defense will continue to monitor the situation. Please listen to your local radio and TV stations or access NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for any updates.

The NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts can be reached by calling 1-866-944-5025. The NOAA Weather Internet services can be found at www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl.

Pre-recorded advisories and notifications are available 24-hours a day on the Maui County Automated Information System (AIS) by calling 986-1200. The same information is available on the Maui County website at www.mauicounty.gov.

(Report Provided By Maui County Civil Defense)

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NEWS FLASH - June 1, 2010 6:50 a.m. HST

Hawai'i Resident Believed Among Those Captured In Gaza Flotilla Raid

Retired Army Col. Ann Wright, a human rights advocate who makes Honolulu her home, was believed to be in Israeli military custody last night after surviving a deadly attack on a six-ship flotilla taking aid to Gaza.

A YouTube video is said to show the silver-haired Wright among people being escorted from boats and into a tent at the Ashdod port in Israel. Larry Geller, a Hawai'i resident and author of the Disappeared News blog who has met Wright on several occasions, identified a woman in the video striding on the dock in a black baseball cap, T-shirt and pants as being Wright.

"That's good to hear," said Jim Albertini, a friend of Wright's who lives on the Big Island. Albertini tried to call and e-mail her after hearing of the attacks.

"She's a remarkable woman — a person of tremendous integrity," said Albertini, a longtime community activist.

Wright did not respond to a call to her cell phone and an e-mail yesterday.

The pre-dawn Israeli commando operation on the six-boat aid flotilla killed nine pro-Palestinian activists and wounded dozens of others, the Los Angeles Times reported. The boats were diverted to Israel.

Albertini said Wright recently gave a talk on the Big Island about her visits to the Gaza Strip, including a recent attempt to take supplies into the seaside region through its border with Egypt.

While Wright has worked in recent years to get aid and supplies through a blockade of Gaza, she is perhaps best known for her opposition to the Iraq war and having resigned from her State Department post the day before the start of the 2003 U.S. military action.

She also has worked with Cindy Sheehan, another activist against the Iraq war.

Recently she has been active with movements trying to get around a blockade of aid and supplies to Gaza and apparently boarded one of six ships that attempted to skirt Israeli navy ships.

It was unknown yesterday if she was aboard one of the ships in which people were killed and wounded as Israeli commandos boarded the vessels.

Canadian blogger John Bonnar wrote that Wright had anticipated that the Israeli military would fire warning shots over the bows of the ships and possibly try to ram or board the vessels.

"She predicted that the Israeli navy would try to prevent their ships from docking in Gaza and that the military was preparing a warehouse in the Ashelod area to be used as a detention camp for the 700 activists," Bonnar wrote on Rabble.ca.

Wright also has detailed her views about Gaza on the Town Square radio program on Hawaii Public Radio. Show host Beth-Ann Kozlovich said she wasn't surprised that Wright took part in the flotilla.

"She walks her talk," Kozlovich said, noting that although Wright calls O'ahu home, she's rarely here.

"She's gotten herself arrested a couple of times."

Kozlovich said Wright also had spoken up for Army 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, who refused to deploy to Iraq because of his opposition to the war.

"She's outspoken about human rights," said Kozlovich.

Reach Greg Wiles at gwiles@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 31, 2010 4:40 p.m. HST

Underwater Volcano Erupts in South Pacific

SAIPAN, Northern Marianas — A volcanic eruption near the Pacific's Northern Mariana Islands shot clouds of ash and vapor nearly eight miles into the sky, federal scientists said.

The eruption occurred early Saturday and appeared to come from an underwater volcano off Sarigan, a sparsely inhabited island about 100 miles north of the U.S. commonwealth's main island of Saipan.

The Northern Marianas are about 3,800 miles southwest of Hawaii.

USGS volcanologist Game McGimsey said Sunday that scientists are still trying to pinpoint the source but evidence is pointing to an underwater mountain.

"People on the island (Sarigan) heard a loud explosion and almost immediately there was a heavy ash fall which turned to a light fall fairly quickly," McGimsey told The Associated Press. He said there was no ash in Saipan or Guam.

The eruption was fairly brief and no other volcanic clouds have been detected, said McGimsey, who is based in Anchorage, Alaska. Scientists don't know if the undersea activity is continuing.

Satellite images showed the cloud reaching to 40,000 feet. But the USGS said it was largely water vapor and strong winds were dispersing it.

McGimsey said researchers flew over the area Sunday and spotted discolored water presumably over the volcanic vent, estimated at 1,000 feet beneath sea level.

(Report Provided by The Associated Press)

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NEWS FLASH - May 31, 2010 1:10 p.m. HST

HPU Wins College World Series

No. 3 Hawai'i Pacific used a four-run rally in the fifth inning and then escaped a tense bases-loaded predicament in the final frame to beat No. 2 Valdosta State, 4-3, today to win its first NCAA?Division II Softball National Championship at Heritage Park in St. Joseph, Mo.

HPU trailed 2-0 after one inning and was held to one hit over the first four innings before putting together what would become all the runs it needed.

HPU sent 10 batters to the plate and pounded out six hits in the fifth.

Caira Pires led off with a single and Brianne Patton's sacrifice bunt moved her to second. No. 9 hitter Chante Tesoro then reached on a bunt single and Pires came around to score after a Valdosta State error.

Leadoff hitter Ciera Senas then reached on a single to force a pitching change by the Blazers, who turned to Margaret Carter in relief of starter Holly Satterfield.

However, Casey Sugihara singled to drive in Tesoro to tie it and an error by Valdosta State allowed Senas to advance to third and Sugihara to second.

Designated player Maile Kim's RBI single gave HPU the lead at 3-2 and pinch runner Pomaikai Kalakau scored on a fielder's choice to make it 4-2.

Valdosta State (50-9) got a run back in the bottom of the inning. Amber Shaw ledoff with a single and scored on a throwing error by Senas in leftfield.

The Blazers threatened in the bottom of the seventh after it got back-to-back singles by clean-up hitter and First Team All-American catcher Alyssa Shirey and Stephanie Carlson.

Colette Rollins then worked a walk, but pinch hitter Amy Brightwell lined to Pires at third for the second out.

First Team All-American pitcher Sherise Musquiz then got April Hutchins to fly out to centerfielder Kozy Toriano for the game's final out.

Valdosta State got on the board early with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Morgan Johnson hit a one-out single through the left side of the infield and Marti Littlefield followed with a double to rightfield that put both baserunners in scoring position. Shirey then drove in both runners on a line-drive, double that went over Toriano's head in centerfield.

Musquiz allowed three runs on 10 hits to improve to 34-3 on the year.

HPU got runners on base in the first three innings — including leadoff walks in the first and second — but couldn't bring them in.

The Sea Warriors (50-8) went 4-0 in the in the eight-team, double-elimination tournament. The Blazers (50-9) went unbeaten in their bracket, setting up the championship.

Hawai'i Loa College won the NAIA national softball title in 1991. It merged with HPU in 1992.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 31, 2010 6:45 a.m. HST

Amy Hanaiali'i Wins 16th at 33rd 'Hokus'

The 33rd annual Na Hoku Hanohano Awards — Hawai'i's version of the Grammys for locally produced music — commenced last night at the Hawai'i Convention Center, with long-time industry favorites and newly beloved performers being recognized for their contributions to the local music scene.

Amy Hanaiali'i walked away this year with her 16th Na Hoku award for best album of the year, for her 2009 album "Friends and Family of Hawai'i," a collaborative album, which features duets with notable local male musicians such as Henry Kapono, John Cruz and Nathan Awe'au, as well as a duet with country music star Willie Nelson.

"It's such an honor to have even been nominated," Hanaiali'i said. "Being nominated for a Hoku means as much to me as being nominated for a Grammy. This album means so much to me because I had the opportunity to work with so many talented men. It just has a great strong male presence about it. I just feel so honored."

Hanaiali'i was nominated for five awards last night.

The biggest awards of the evening went to Mailani for female vocalist, Uncle Willie K for male vocalist, Jeff Peterson for slack key album of the year, Ho'okena for group of the year, and Uluwehi Guerrero for Hawaiian album of the year.

New-on-the-scene artist Anuhea got the prize for most promising new artist, as well as the award for best contemporary album, for her self-titled debut album.

"I feel especially honored because the Na Hokus are awarded by my musical peers, and to get the award for promising new artist makes me want to continue to do my best, and keep on keeping on," Anuhea said.

'Ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro received two awards — for best instrumental album for "Live," as well as the people's choice award for favorite entertainer of the year.

The ceremony kicked off with a Hollywood-style red carpet event, which included all of the fanfare that is expected of an awards show — fast-paced interviews, style chatter (Kapulanakehau Tamure of Na Palapalai wore a dramatic Sig Zane dress with a regal flair) and plenty of flash photography.

The ceremony itself was a sold-out, black-tie affair, punctuated by shrieks of support from fans, friends and family members cheering their favorite artists.

This year's ceremony for the first time was preceded by a four-day Hawaiian music festival, the Na Hoku O Hawai'i Music Festival. Proceeds financed an upgrade to the television broadcast of the awards ceremony.

International recording artists Mick Fleetwood and Kenny Loggins were guests at the festival and performed at the awards ceremony — along with a long roster of award nominees, such as Mailani, Nesian Nine, Anuhea, Hanaiali'i, Hapa and Henry Kapono.

One of the highlights was a collaborative rendition of reggae artist Matisyahu's peace anthem, "One Day," performed with an Island twist by Shimabukuro, Fleetwood, Loggins and Hapa's Barry Flanagan.

The Hawai'i Academy of Recording Arts awarded 20 Na Hoku awards during the ceremony.

Reach Kawehi Haug at khaug@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 30, 2010 8:15 a.m. HST

Honolulu-Based Coast Guard Cutter Heading to Help in Gulf

The Honolulu-based Coast Guard Cutter Walnut will deploy to the Gulf of Mexico today to assist in oil spill response efforts.

"The crew of the Walnut is ready and willing to utilize our oil spill equipment and training to assist the residences of the Gulf Coast in this multiagency response," said Lt. Andrea Holt, executive officer of the Walnut. "Even though we will be deploying more than 5,000 miles from our homeport in Honolulu, the crew is ready to meet this challenge."

The Walnut will be deployed for four months.

In addition to its oil skimming equipment, the cutter is equipped with satellite, radio and communications equipment that will allow it to direct recovery vessels working with them.

Coast Guard Cutter Walnut is one of 16 cutters designed with oil skimming capability and one of several responding to the oil spill.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 30, 2010 7:15 a.m. HST

Rainbow Wahina Stun #1 Alabama, Advance to College World Series

Jenna Rodriguez hit a two-out, two-run walk-off homer as the University of Hawaii Rainbow Wahine softball team stunned No. 1 seed Alabama, 5-4, today in Tuscaloosa, Ala., to reach its first Women's College World Series.

UH (49-14), the 16th seed, goes to next week's Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The tournament starts Thursday against Missouri and will extend the Rainbow Wahine's road trip, which began May 10 with the Western Athletic Conference Tournament.

It was a shocking turn of events, which saw Alabama (52-11) overcome a 3-0 lead for a 4-3 advantage and witnessed the pitching mastery of Tide ace Kelsi Dunne (30-6), who struck out 16.

The player the right-handed ace couldn't master was Rodriguez, who played in last year's Junior College World Series.

Rodriguez staked UH to a quick lead with a three-run homer in the bottom of the first inning. She batted 3-for-4 (UH only managed five hits) and drove in all five runs.

UH lead-off hitter Kelly Majam, the nation's home-run leader at 30, opened the bottom of the seventh with a walk, taking a 3-2 changeup from Dunne.

But Dunne then struck out the next two batters — Jessica Iwata for the fourth time in the game and Melissa Gonzalez for the second time.

With the crowd in a frenzy sensing a victory and another Alabama berth to the WCWS, Rodriguez slammed the first pitch high over the left-field foul pole, sending the Rainbow Wahine and their small contingency of fans into a wild celebration.

After she launched her hit, Rodriguez stayed near home plate, watching to make sure the ball stayed fair, much like Carlton Fisk, a Boston Red Sox famous moment that UH coach and Massachusetts-raised Bob Coolen should know about.

"Simply amazing. This is the best day of my life," Coolen told ESPN.

When asked how a 16th seed could advance to the World Series, he said, "Chemistry. Chemistry, all the way."

UH's first berth to the Women's College World Series comes on the 30th anniversary of the men reaching their only trip to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

The Rainbow Wahine had to dispatch two teams from power conferences — the Pac-10 Conference, Big 12 and Southeastern Conference — to earn the trip. UH beat Stanford and Texas Tech to advance to the Super Regional. Last five of the other eight teams in the WCWS are frm those conferences.

UH jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first inning on Rodriguez's three-run homer and held the lead until the sixth.

In the bottom of the first, UH's Majam opened with a single. One out later, Gonzalez walked and Rodriguez followed with a homer to left.

UH hardly threatened after that as Dunne was dominant.

In the top of the fourth, Charlotte Morgan hammered a blast over the right-field fence to make it 3-1.

In the top of the sixth, Alabama's Kayla Braud bunted for a hit, but was forced out at second. Morgan then walked before Larsen hit a three-run homer to left-center for a 4-3 lead.

Meanwhile, Dunne was in control after the first-inning slip up. She recorded 16 strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings and is the school record holder for most strikeouts in a season at 355.

UH, the home team today, started left-hander Kaia Parnaby, who pitched in both games Saturday with no decisions. She pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing four earned runs and striking out four.

Stephanie Ricketts, who replaced Parnaby in the top of the sixth, got the win.

Dunne was yesterday's first-game winner and second-game loser yesterday.

Parnaby started the second game Saturday, a game UH led 7-1 before winning 8-7.Alabama won the opener, 8-0.

Dunne pitched a two-hitter to beat UH in Saturday's opening game, which was pushed from Friday to Saturday because of inclement weather. But Dunne, who came in relief with the game tied at 7 in the second game, saw her 17-game winning streak snapped in the second game.

UH, which hit three homers in the second game yesterday and two today, increased its NCAA record for most home runs for a season at 154.

Yesterday's second-game victory by the the Rainbow Wahine ended the Crimson Tide's 28-game winning streak, tying the best-of-three Super Regional at a game apiece and forcing today's winner-take-all game.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 30, 2010 7:05 a.m. HST

Interisland Airfares 'Leveling Off'

The wild swings in airfares that characterized the interisland travel market over the past five years appear to have subsided, with the base fare stabilizing at a level that is only modestly higher than when Aloha Airlines folded in the spring of 2008.

A number of factors, including more direct flights to the Neighbor Islands from the Mainland, have helped keep interisland carriers from jacking up rates aggressively, analysts said. The current lowest one-way interisland fare of $58 compares with a $49 fare that was the lowest available at the time Aloha went under.

Fares rose in the months after Aloha's demise, then fell when Mokulele teamed with Indianapolis-based Republic Airways to bring new jet service to the interisland market in the fall of 2008. Fares began climbing again when go! and Mokulele merged in October 2009. The $58 base fare charged by Hawaiian and go! Mokulele has been in effect since late last year.

go! airlines set the stage for dramatically lower interisland fares when it entered the market in June 2006 offering limited one-way fares of $19 and $29. Its base fare of $39 was well below the $80 and $90 lowest fares available before go!'s arrival.

Hawaiian and Aloha were forced to match go!'s pricing, which forced all three to offer the discounted tickets at below cost — a major factor in Aloha's collapse.

While go! called the shots in ticket pricing back then, Hawaiian is in the driver's seat today, said Peter Forman, a local aviation historian and author.

go! Mokulele tried to raise the minimum fare to $63 in January. But when Hawaiian didn't match the fare after one week, go! Mokulele was forced to roll back to $58.

"Hawaiian has been showing the constraint not to raise ticket prices. One reason is that Hawaiian is flying fuller planes so they don't need to raise their fares," Forman said.

go! Mokulele, on the other hand, has been struggling to fill its planes, he said. Hawaiian's load factor has averaged 84 percent since the start of the year, while go! Mokulele's planes have been about 67 percent full, on average.

"They (go! Mokulele) really can't raise their prices in that situation," he said. "Any airline can lower fares. But if go! wants to raise fares it will need Hawaiian's cooperation."

And go! Mokulele can ill afford to see its market share in the Islands slip any further with its parent company, Mesa Air Group, struggling to work its way through bankruptcy .

Forman said he doubts either Hawaiian or go! Mokulele is able to make money charging $58 per ticket, which is why they sell only a limited number at that price. According to Hawaiian's website, coach fares go up incrementally depending on availability, topping out at $127.

Hawaiian is better positioned to absorb losses with lower-priced tickets because it has a robust Mainland and international business, he said.

Hawaiian's geographic diversification has helped it maintain profitability as demand for interisland flights has waned. The 7.4 million passengers who traveled on interisland flights last year were the fewest in at least 20 years, according to data from the state Department of Transportation.

Interisland passengers peaked at 10.5 million in 1996 before beginning a steady decline. The numbers perked up slightly in 2007 after go! came into the market, but then resumed their slide in 2008.

"When Mainland-based carriers began flying straight to the outer islands there wasn't the need to connect through Honolulu anymore," said Steve Danishek, a Seattle-based travel consultant.

"Alaska Airlines is going to all the islands now from places like Seattle, Portland and Sacramento using their 737s," Danishek said.

Indeed, the DOT's figures show that the number of airline passengers using Hono- lulu International Airport as a transit point has dropped sharply, falling from more than a million in the early 1990s to just over 9,000 last year.

Forman also said better hospitals and more shopping options on the Neighbor Islands these days mean residents there have fewer reasons to fly to Honolulu.

Even though fares for interisland flights have stabilized, many local travelers still long for the days of the airfare wars.

"I fly way less now," said Daniel Takashima, 31, who grew up on O'ahu but moved to Maui after high school.

"All my family is here," said Takashima, a graduate of Waipahu High School. "Before when it was 40 bucks I would fly once or twice a month. I would come to O'ahu for birthday parties, I would come to almost every one. Now I come back maybe twice a year, mostly on holidays and special occasions."

Raka Washburn, who traveled to the Big Island on business last week, said her roundtrip fare was more than $200.

"These prices are outrageous. If I had to pay for it out of my pocket I sure as heck wouldn't be traveling as often," said Washburn, a Kane'ohe resident and former Aloha Airlines employee who works for an environmental engineering firm.

Roy Goo, a Kaua'i resident who is moving to Honolulu to work at the University of Hawai'i, said he has cut his interisland travel in half since the days of bargain-basement fares.

"I would try to go back and forth maybe two times a month on leisure trips. Now I'll go at most once a month."

Singer-songwriter Keola Beamer and his wife Moana flew to Honolulu from their home on Maui last week to rehearse for an upcoming Memorial Day concert.

"We may not consider the extra, kind of fun trip any more. But we have to travel for work," Moana Beamer said.

Added Keola Beamer, "We feel like there is a lack of competition. And we particularly miss the Superferry where we could just load all our stuff on board."

Reach Alan Yonan Jr. at ayonan@honoluluadvertiser.com.

(Report Provided by The Honolulu Advertiser)

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NEWS FLASH - May 29, 2010 7:25 p.m. HST

Removed Baldwin Principal Seeks to Set Record Straight

WAILUKU - Saying she wanted to dispel rumors spreading through the community, Baldwin High School Principal Natalie Gonsalves disclosed via e-mail a May 21 document titled "notice of investigation" from Complex Area Superintendent Bruce Anderson.

It states that Anderson's office has "learned of alleged inappropriate information" in a Baldwin High School letter distributed to the parents of graduating seniors regarding commencement.

Anderson confirmed last week that Gonsalves had been placed on leave "pending an investigation," but he refused to provide details. He said Gonsalves' leave started May 20, the day before Baldwin's graduation ceremonies.

Anderson's letter to Gonsalves doesn't specify what "inappropriate information" was in the letter to parents and guardians.

Vice Principal Philip Gilbert has been assigned as principal. Gilbert has declined to comment.

Gonsalves sent written comments in an e-mail to The Maui News last week. She wrote that the letter that prompted the investigation was distributed to parents at a senior parent meeting for graduation and is similar to one that has been distributed for years "with very few minor edits."

"Although I did not compose the letter, I am the principal, therefore, the department considers me responsible," Gonsalves wrote.

Gonsalves could not be reached at a cell phone number she provided, but in another e-mail, she said she wanted to clarify the reason she was on leave.

"I just wanted to squelch all the nasty rumors I'm hearing. When people aren't told, it leaves them the opportunity to conjure up anything," she said.

Anderson could not be reached for comment.

In his written notice to Gonsalves, Anderson discourages her from speaking "to any individual concerning the case as it may jeopardize the integrity of the investigation process."

"Please be advised that the department strictly prohibits any form of retaliation," he added.

On Saturday, Gonsalves wrote in an e-mail that being away from the campus and students has been "very difficult" for her.

"The school was . . . IS . . . my life," she wrote. "I hope this matter is resolved, and I can go back to doing what I was hired to do . . . make changes and move the school."

She said student reading and math scores have "greatly increased" since her administration began in 2006. In addition, the school has kept its accreditation status from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Gonsalves said she's sure accreditation will be renewed for another three years.

Gonsalves said she's had to make difficult decisions at Baldwin, some of which she knows may not have been liked by the staff.

"Change is difficult for anyone, and a few of the staff may not like the change, but we must always remember why we're there . . . it's for the students," she said. "The day I stop making decisions that are for the students is the day I should step down from my position."

Last week, public school students began their summer recess.

(Report Provided by The Maui News)

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Breaking News Archives

NEW FOR 2010: Maui TV News Breaking News stories are now being archived. Each month (or more frequently if needed) we will save an archive of all the Breaking News stories covered to date on this page. And you can use the search box in the upper right corner of this page to locate a specific story or topic. Now available:

	May 5 - 31, 2010	April 16 - May 5, 2010
March 30 - April 16, 2010	March 19 - 30, 2010	March 11 - 19, 2010
March 4 - 11, 2010	February 25 - March 4, 2010	February 9 - 25, 2010
February 1-8, 2010	January 2010	December, 2009 (partial)

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