Hawaii Island police investigating Puna murder

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3 years ago

May 22, 2022

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Hawaii Island police investigating Puna murder

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Toddler wanders within feet of 400ft cliff near rim of Kīlauea volcano

Published

6 hours ago

December 28, 2024

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Toddler wanders within feet of 400ft cliff near rim of Kīlauea volcano

Hawaii national park rangers have reissued warnings about volcano tourism after a small child wandered off and came within feet of a 400ft cliff near the rim of Kīlauea volcano, whose latest eruption had begun on 23 December.

“The hazards that coincide with an eruption are dangerous, and we have safety measures in place including closed areas, barriers, closure signs and traffic management,” said park superintendent Rhonda Loh in a statement.

“Your safety is our utmost concern, but we rely on everyone to recreate responsibility. National parks showcase nature’s splendor but they are not playgrounds,” Loh added.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) Hawaiian volcano observatory reported that the eruption had entered its second pause and, as it could restart at any time, toxic gas emissions were still high. Glassy volcanic particulates, called tephra, blanketed the closed portion of Crater Rim Drive downwind of the lava fountains that were active over the last few days.

In an advisory, the park service warned that visitors may encounter unstable ground, sharp volcanic rocks and hidden lava tubes that pose risks of injury. It added that volcanos can produce hazardous gases like sulfur dioxide, and that weather conditions can change rapidly.

The child had wandered off from his family “in a split second”, park officials said, as the family stood at the top of a 400ft cliff, admiring the lava glow within Kaluapele – the Kīlauea caldera – at sunset on 23 December. The ongoing eruptions of Kīlauea, now the fifth since 2020, have sent lava fountains as high as 262ft with molten material.

The toddler ran toward the edge of the cliff before his mother snatched him up just feet away from what likely would have been a fatal fall.

Officials at active volcanos often struggle to balance the spectacle of an eruption with safety. They say it pays to know whether the earth’s expulsion is effusive and explosive.

Effusive eruptions involve a relatively gentle flow of lava, often erupting from a fissure with the lava slowly creating a broad, cone-shaped mountain of hardened lava. Under those conditions, the main risks include lava flows and harmful, invisible gases.

Explosive eruptions carry the risks of ash fall, the potential for landslides and rockfalls, as well as pyroclastic flows – fast-moving and lethal clouds of hot gas and volcanic matter that cause severe burns, fatalities and destruction of anything in their path – volcanic blasts and volcanic mudflows.

Travel insurer World Nomads advises researching your volcano destination, familiarizing yourself with the evacuation routes and procedure, and visiting with a licensed guide.

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Hawaii museum lays off entire staff, at risk of closing for good

Published

14 hours ago

December 28, 2024

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Hawaii museum lays off entire staff, at risk of closing for good

Located in downtown Hilo in a historic art deco building, the Pacific Tsunami Museum fronts Hilo Bay, where past tsunamis devastated the town.

Courtesy Pacific Tsunami Museum

Tsunamis have killed more people in Hawaii than any other form of natural disaster, yet basic tsunami education — from signs of an approaching one to what to do when it comes — is severely lacking in the Islands. Located in downtown Hilo on the Island of Hawaii, the Pacific Tsunami Museum was initially founded 30 years ago to fill that void — a hub for education and awareness that contends “no one should die due to a tsunami.” The museum is filled with photos and videos of tsunamis that have hit Hawaii and other parts of the Pacific, along with a large archive of firsthand interviews with survivors.

Now, it’s at risk of closing its doors for good.

Earlier this month, the Pacific Tsunami Museum laid off all 10 of its employees and suspended operations. Former staff are now volunteering their time to keep the doors open on a reduced schedule.

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“We have several problems,” Walter Dudley told SFGATE. Dudley co-founded the museum with tsunami survivor Jeanne Johnston in 1994 to educate residents and visitors about the natural disaster and to serve as a living memorial to those who lost their lives.

The museum is filled with exhibits, sharing the history of major tsunami events in the Islands and across the Pacific.
Courtesy Pacific Tsunami Museum

The museum’s 100-year-old historic building, which was donated to the organization in 1997, is expensive to maintain. “The AC died and cost us way outside our budget,” Dudley said. “The roof sprung a leak and we used our entire supplemental budget to fix that and clear up mold because, you know, Hilo is on the rainy side.”

Dudley doesn’t want to see the museum close completely. “Sadly, that’s one possibility,” he said. “I mean, we all hope that doesn’t happen, but unless we get some, you know, some serious help for the issues that we do have, that’s the worst-case scenario.”

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The museum needs monetary donations to fix up the building and to pay the staff so that it can reopen. “As the years go by, a lot of survivors who were many of our biggest supporters have passed away,” Dudley continued. “They’re no longer around, and that actually makes our mission all that much important because people tend to forget that tsunamis are a true and present danger in Hawaii.”

The last deadly Hawaii tsunami was in 1975, when an earthquake off the coast of the Island of Hawaii generated large waves within seconds that killed two people. In 1960, a tsunami resulting from a 9.5 Chilean earthquake killed 61 people in Hilo.

The deadliest tsunami to hit Hawaii in modern history was on April 1, 1946, when a magnitude 8.6 earthquake in the Aleutian Islands off Alaska triggered a tsunami with waves reaching heights of 55 feet. At least 159 people were killed throughout the Hawaiian island chain. The greatest loss of life was in Hilo, where an estimated 96 people died.

On April 1, 1946, in downtown Hilo, people are running from the third wave, estimated to be 30 feet high.
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Courtesy Pacific Tsunami Museum

Because there are spans of years between major tsunami events, education is important to remind people of Hawaii’s tsunami history and risks — and to take them seriously.

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“There’s an apathy around knowing and believing it will happen again. And it will happen again. It absolutely will,” Cindi Preller, director of the Pacific Tsunami Museum, told SFGATE. “The earth’s tectonics don’t change. It’s just unpredictable, it’s unknowable. And for the local tsunami, it can arrive in just a few minutes, so it’s really, really, really important that people know nature’s warning signs as well as the official warning signs.”

The Pacific Tsunami Museum’s mission is to educate the public about the dangers of tsunamis and to serve as a living memorial for those who have died.
Courtesy Pacific Tsunami Museum

Preller, who is now working as a volunteer alongside her staff, said visitor numbers were fine but building repairs have set them back. “If we were going to really restore this building, that would cost millions,” she said.

Through it all, Preller remains focused on the mission of the museum. She wants to revitalize the space and would like to see a new generation come in and help rebuild and do new things with the exhibits.

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“We need to strategically plan and create,” she said. “We just need to really revitalize and shake things up and create a plan so that we never ever have to shutter again.”

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Hawaii nonprofits brace for less federal funding

Published

23 hours ago

December 28, 2024

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Hawaii nonprofits brace for less federal funding

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Hawaii nonprofits that provide critical social safety nets are facing economic hardship of their own.

President-elect Donald Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is expected to slash federal appropriations, government contracts and grant awards, and heavily impact social services across the state.

Melissa Pavlicek, Hawaii True Cost Coalition, explained, “The community-based organizations that are providing key government services are already struggling to provide those services. Some of their contract prices have not increased in over 10 years. The cost to provide those services is significantly greater. The transportation costs, rent, employees, food, everything has gone up. And to serve the community costs more. So we’re looking to our state policy leaders to help ensure those services are continued.”

To mitigate the potential fallout or disruption of services, nonprofit leaders are working to fill the gaps with the help of lawmakers, private donors, philanthropy, corporate foundations and residents themselves.

Suzanne Skjold, Aloha United Way COO, said, “Whether that’s helping your neighbor, maybe donating to a charity that is losing a program, even getting involved politically, locally, you know, voting matters. Being involved in our legislature matters.”

“The slack really has to be picked up by the state and county governments as well as the private sector,” warned U.S. Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, “and so these are gonna be tough times and I’m telling everybody, hey, let’s, not sugarcoat this. We have to be prepared for the unexpected.”

Another concern is legislation that some believe if passed could be used to target progressive nonprofits opposed by the Trump administration.

For now, community advocates are urged to keep calm.

Case said, “The first thing I would advise everybody is not to freak out. That we have been through changes in administration before. That these are core federal programs that within Congress, even a divided and polarized Congress, many, many people from both parties support these programs.”

“We want to make sure Hawaii doesn’t become the kind of place where we lead in a way that’s hateful to others,” Skjold said.

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