HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Large crowds gathered in Ko Olina on Thursday for a benefit concert to support flood victims from last month’s Kona low storms.

The Aloha in Action benefit concert boasted an all-star lineup, including Jack Johnson, Kokohe Kai, Jason Momoa, Amy Hanaialii and Kimie Miner, to name a few.

“We called it ‘Aloha in Action,’ because, really, that’s what it’s all about. Everyone just showing their aloha, coming together and making sure that we’re doing our part to support others when there is need,” said Kuhio Lewis, president and CEO of the Hawaiian Council.

Proceeds from the concert will go to the Hawaiian Council’s Kakoo Mai fund to benefit residents affected by the flood, with some also going to nonprofit organizations providing support.

So far, organizers said they’ve raised almost $3 million in collective funds.

“It’s going to go to support the nonprofits that are on the ground doing that important work, oftentimes it’s hard to raise the money at the same time, so we’re being that conduit to help them to do that part, raise the money to make sure they’re resourced and supporting our community.”

Lewis said they are using their experience from assisting with the recovery of the 2023 Lahaina wildfires to help flood-impacted residents.

“We learned a lot in helping the Lahaina residents recover, he said. “So when we saw what was going on here, we applied all of our knowledge to helping the residents that were impacted by the floods.”

Organizers say as of earlier Thursday afternoon, 6,500 tickets were sold.

The concert runs until 10 p.m., and tickets are still available.

“Just come down,” he said. “We’re still selling tickets at the door. We don’t want to deny anyone. It’s a great showing of the community coming together.”

There is a charge for parking, cash only.

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – You are invited to take a step into Hawaii’s past with a unique collection of antiques and collectables.

Let’s go holoholo to The Knickknackery Hawaii in Hilo.

Every morning, Keli’I Wilson sets up antiques right outside his shop, the Knickknackery Hawaii, which he co-owns and is a curator for.

“About 11 years ago, me and my partner started collecting a lot of antiques, and we visited this little store in Honoka’a, and we started on a bench outside selling antiques in Honoka’a 11 years ago,” said Wilson. “The lady that we bought from told us that we have a lot, we should try and sell it and see what happens. About 9 months later, we rented the spot next to her shop, and we had a store for the first time in Honoka’a.”

Wilson said they moved to the corner of Haili and Kapiolani Street.

And now, they’re along Ponohawai St. in Hilo.

“So, when we decided we’re going to open up a shop, we wanted to come up with a very cool name, so I scanned through this old Webster’s dictionary from 1913, and I found the meaning of antiques, it was called knickknackery,” said Wilson. “Collecting knickknacks, whatnots, and thingamabobs, things worthy of collecting, that was the meaning in the Webster’s dictionary, and I said, there’s the name right there.”

Wilson said he loves vintage wares, old furniture, and its history.

“It reminds me of my grandma, my aunties that had beautiful Hawaiian things in their old homes,” said Wilson.

In the shop, there are hula animatronics that dance hula, which Wilson said were made for the Kona Seaside Hotel in the 1950s and were displayed outside of their luau show.

There’s lots to see.

Look at Hawaii in the 1900’s through postcards or a trip down memory lane in the 90s.

There are all kinds of collectibles, from books, cameras, and old records.

“Well, it’s immaculate, for one thing, and it’s just beautiful the way everything is displayed,” said Vashti McMurray, who was visiting from Canada.

“I would say it’s like quirky, has like a lot of like life and personality, said Ivy McMurray, who was also visiting from Canada.,

“A lot of the visitors that I get is from off-island, or they’ve lived in the mainland for 20, 30 years, and they come here, and they see all the things that remind them of Hawaii and that’s what I think matters to me, that I put that back out in the world, the hospitality, the beauty, the nostalgia of vintage Hawaii,” said Wilson.

KALIHI KAI, Oahu (KHON2) — Tuesday afternoon’s line of backed-up traffic came in part after equipment on a truck hit the Gulick overpass, the lowest overpass on the island.

“Every time (Gulick overpass) gets hit, it takes us an hour to four hours to clear it,” said Ed Sniffen, Hawaii Department of Transportation director. “First, our people have to get out in traffic to get there, and second, we have to make sure we check the structure, the integrity of the structure and remove any loose concrete that might be there.”

The trucking industry said it takes precautions to ensure accurate and safe routes for its trucks, but accidents can still happen.

“Sometimes when we do get orders to deliver things, we go by what the person who’s doing the initial order is, we go by what their weight and their height is, and sometimes it’s not correct,” said Tina Yamaki, Hawaii Transportation Association managing director.

Tuesday wasn’t the first time the Gulick overpass has been hit, which is why raising it is a top priority for the DOT. They said the entirety of the overpass should be closed by June, with work expected to last for about a year.

“The Gulick overpass is our lowest clearance in the state right now, it’s at 14.3, the next nearest one is at 14.7, and it never gets hit,” said Sniffen. “Gulick overpass has been hit in the last five years at least four times.”

DOT is currently installing a pedestrian overpass to connect nearby schools and homes in the area, which will be installed by early June, and a complete shutdown of the area is expected by the end of June.

The raising of the overpass is part of the larger project to expand Middle Street to five lanes.

“The project itself is over 100 million dollars, very important for this area,” said Sniffen. “It’s an area that we always have back-ups during peak times, and non-peak times, and we always have a lot of weaving in those areas because of the merge that we have there.”