Hawaii

The National Weather Service Just Issued a ‘Red Flag Warning’ for All of Hawaii

Published

9 months ago

August 31, 2023

The National Weather Service Just Issued a ‘Red Flag Warning’ for All of Hawaii

The National Weather Service on Wednesday warned that gusty winds and low humidity have increased the risk that fires could spread rapidly in the western parts of each Hawaiian island, three weeks after a deadly blaze tore through a coastal Maui town during a similar alert. But the agency said winds wouldn’t be as powerful compared to Aug. 8, when flames burned down much of Lahaina, killing at least 115 people and destroying more than 2,000 structures. The fire was the deadliest in the United States in more than a century, per the AP.

Lahaina’s flames were fanned by wind gusts topping 60mph. This time, winds are forecast to be 15mph to 30mph, with gusts up to 50mph, said Maureen Ballard, meteorologist at the agency’s Honolulu office. “There is a magnitude of difference between the wind speeds in this event versus August 8,” Ballard said. The agency issued a Red Flag Warning for the leeward sides of the Hawaiian Islands through Thursday afternoon. It said gusts, low humidity, and dry grasses and trees could contribute to “extreme fire behavior.” It urged people to delay activities that could throw off sparks.

“It’s definitely still something to be concerned about,” Ballard said. The Lahaina fire was fueled by powerful winds whipped up by a combination of Hurricane Dora, which passed some 500 miles to the south, and a very strong high-pressure system to the north of the islands. The cause of the blaze hasn’t been determined, but it’s possible it was ignited by bare electrical wire and leaning power poles toppled by the strong winds. Maui’s electric utility, Hawaiian Electric, acknowledged its power lines started a wildfire on Maui, but it faulted county firefighters for declaring the blaze contained and leaving the scene, only to have a second wildfire break out nearby.

Maui County has sued the utility. As high winds reentered the weather forecast on Tuesday, the county, Hawaiian Electric, and Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, head of the Hawaii National Guard, issued a joint statement saying they were working together to minimize the risk of wildfire and ensure public safety. “In our lifetimes, Hawaii has never been tested like this,” the statement said. “We will do what we have always done when confronted by hardship and heartbreak—we will stand together for our people and communities and work to keep them safe.”

(Read more Hawaii stories.)

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Hawaii

Developer breaks ground on large industrial warehouse project in West Oahu

Published

3 hours ago

May 31, 2024

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Developer breaks ground on large industrial warehouse project in West Oahu

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A Honolulu developer broke ground Thursday on the future home of new industrial space in West Oahu.

Developer Avalon Development Company started building “The Crossing” at the Kapolei Business Park on the corner of Kalaeloa Boulevard and Lauwiliwili Street.

The Industrial Warehouse Project will feature 28 warehouse units for small and medium businesses.

The concrete tilt-up buildings have high ceilings, clear spans, high power capacity, covered loading dock access, and other features sought by businesses.

Most importantly, the project is expected to provide much needed industrial space to local businesses.

Avalon hopes to open by June 2025.

Learn more about the project by clicking here.

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Hawaii

Green signs new laws aimed at providing financial relief to condo owners, residents

Published

10 hours ago

May 31, 2024

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Green signs new laws aimed at providing financial relief to condo owners, residents

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Gov. Josh Green signed a series of bills into law Thursday that’s aimed at addressing housing challenges for Hawaii condominiums.

Raelene Tenno, Education Chair for the Hawaii Council of Community Associations, said she and many other owners are scrambling to pay huge insurance increases.

“We’ve already planned our budgets for the for the next year and then we get this notice that it went up that high, so it just kind of blew the budget out of whack,” said Tenno.

”Even for my condo that I own, the maintenance fees are almost equal to the rent that you collect.”

But help is on the way, thanks to several bills signed by the governor on Thursday.

One offers government loans to help condo buildings make improvements such as fire sprinklers and pipe replacement.

House Speaker Scott Saiki said condos were a priority this legislative session.

“One is because the loan is amortized, you avoid a large front-end assessment on unit owners,” said Saiki. “The second benefit is that the loan is repaid by individual unit owners in the building.”

“So if a unit owner sells the unit and moves, the new owner will assume that obligation, so it goes from owner to owner over a period of time.”

Another bill lets individual condo owners invest in a fund to finance solar, rooftop panels and batteries.

“For people who live in homes that can’t afford to pay for those systems, or who can’t even get conventional financing for those systems… The people who receive these rooftop improvements, will repay that loan over time through the real property through their electric utility bill,” explained Saiki.

Richard Emery works for the nation’s largest condominium management company, Associa.

He said about 70% of the condos in Hawaii are more than 40 years old.

“So, all of these components are starting to come due for need of replacement or upgrade and certainly the cost of energy is a major concern,” said Emery. “So, anything we can do to provide another tool for condos to use to refinance its capital components and lower its operating costs through energy reform is a good thing.”

“It’s going to be good in the long run especially when you use energy efficient projects like elevators where they have to do their elevator upgrades,” said Tenno. “It’s always gonna involve electrical upgrade.”

The other bills signed into law will streamline the paperwork for buying a condo and modernize procedures for condo meetings and voting process.

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Hawaii

Hawaii’s John John Florence finishes second at Tahiti Pro in Olympic preview | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Published

17 hours ago

May 31, 2024

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Hawaii’s John John Florence finishes second at Tahiti Pro in Olympic preview | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

REUTERS
Mens final winner Italo Ferreira, mens runner-up John John Florence, womens final winner Vahine Fierro and womens runner-up Brisa Hennessy celebrate with their trophies.

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Men’s final winner Italo Ferreira, men’s runner-up John John Florence, women’s final winner Vahine Fierro and women’s runner-up Brisa Hennessy celebrate with their trophies.

Brazil’s Italo Ferreira won the Shiseido Tahiti Pro in giant glassy tubes at the Olympic venue of Teahupo’o today, showcasing the spectacular potential of the world’s best surfers in perfect waves for the world’s biggest sporting event.

Tokyo Games gold medallist Ferreira beat Hawaii’s John John Florence, who will surf for the U.S. at the Paris Olympics, in flawless but fearsome waves of 4-5 metres.

Ferreira got the perfect start to the final, watching Florence get pummelled on his first wave then catching two absolute bombs for a pair of excellent scores.

Florence fought back with the highest wave of the final, a 9.33 out of 10 for a fierce barrel, but could not reel in Ferreira, who ended with a two-wave heat total of 17.70 out of 20.

“I missed this event last year and finally I got my win here and I’m really, really stoked,” said Ferreira, after being congratulated by a jet ski-riding French Polynesia President Moetai Brotherson. “That’s it, job done.”

With the Olympics set to start in less two months, the choice of Teahupo’o in the French overseas territory for the surfing competition looked inspired today.

In the best surf conditions for several years on the world championship tour, almost every competitor had highlight reel moments, being shot out of the giant blue barrels into cheering crowds of spectator boats in the channel.

But mistakes were punished hard.

Florence was left spitting out blood after one wipeout early in the day while Brazil’s Gabriel Medina got clipped at the end of an incredible cavern in his semi-final against Florence, coming up with his back scrapped and bleeding from the sharp coral reef.

Rubbing salt into those wounds, Florence caught the next wave and wrestled the dangerous foam ball in the tube for a 9.77, establishing a lead he never relinquished and cruising into the final.

Ferreira, who missed out on the Brazil team for Paris, had earlier dispatched countryman Yago Dora in the quarter-final and then Morocco’s hard-charging Olympian Ramzi Boukhiam in their semi-final.

Tahitian wildcard Vahine Fierro established herself as a favourite for Olympic gold at her home break with a win over fellow Olympian Brisa Hennessy from Costa Rica on Wednesday.

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