Hawaii sends mixed signals on COVID restrictions, officers in court over 16-year-old's shooting death, missiles tested off Kauai, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Hawaii luau Aug. 12, 2021 Hawaii Quarantine Kapu Breakers Facebook page

Hawaii Greenlights Large Events Amid Surge In Covid Cases. Crowd size restrictions enacted by Gov. David Ige included exceptions for professionally planned events with more than 50 people, including weddings, concerts, festivals and conventions. Civil Beat.

Officials consider statewide curfew and new restrictions if COVID-19 cases continue to surge. Officials are also thinking about reinstating the safe travels program and implementing new enforcement plans for people who violate COVID-19 related rules. KITV4.

Hawaii Businesses Are Considering Vaccine Requirements For Customers. As the Covid-19 delta variant drives new cases, business groups are discussing whether to support policies requiring customers to be vaccinated. Civil Beat.

Survey of restaurant owners reveals most don’t support an employee vaccine mandate. About 90% of those who responded weren’t in favor, fearing they would lose workers. Hawaii News Now.

Union questions school safety as COVID-19 cases surge throughout the islands. The union representing Hawaii’s public school teachers is pressuring state officials to implement safer school conditions as COVID-19 cases surge throughout the islands and teachers express concerns about the safety of classrooms. Star-Advertiser. KHON2.

Hawaii students face a vaccine mandate or weekly testing. With the pandemic spiking to unprecedented levels, Hawaii’s institutions of higher learning are taking the extra step in an attempt to safeguard their campuses against the highly contagious delta variant, which is driving the surge. Star-Advertiser.

Hundreds of COVID cases are reported daily, but it’s the undetected cases that worry scientist. Hundreds of COVID cases are reported in Hawaii daily. But there’s growing concern among scientists about the COVID cases going undetected. Hawaii News Now.

Aug. 17, 2021 COVID-19 Update: 460 New Cases in Hawai‘i. The confirmed cases included: 265 on O‘ahu (+65 probable); 74 on Hawai‘i Island (+10 probable); 19 on Maui (+2 probable); 15 on Kaua‘i; two on Molokaʻi; one on Lāna‘i; and six in Hawai‘i residents diagnosed while out of state (+1 probable). Maui Now.

Oahu

Attorneys at odds in recounting Iremamber Sykap shooting. Attorneys dueled Tuesday over the descriptions of the actions taken by three Honolulu police officers during 16-year-old Iremamber Sykap’s final moments as both sides sought to assign responsibility for the deadly showdown April 5 on Kalakaua Avenue. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now.

Emerging Plan Would Pump Hotel Room Tax Revenue Into Rail. HART is looking into helping to cover a $3.6 billion shortfall with a share of a new 3% city hotel tax, but the City Council is noncommittal and the hotel industry is wary. Planners with the Honolulu rail authority are analyzing how much money could be raised to help fund construction of the unfinished transit line if the city imposes its own hotel room tax and gives the project a share of the money. Civil Beat.

Facing New Covid Cases, Waianae School Returns to Distance Learning. Kamaile Academy’s principal informed parents of the move in a letter sent Monday. Civil Beat.

Nonprofit to hold meeting on cesspool solutions. Wastewater Alternatives & Innovations will hold an “Innovations in Sanitation” meeting from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. today at the Pacific Club with presentations by policymakers, engineers, community organizations and wastewater professionals. Star-Advertiser.

Ocean Safety conducts 271 rescues, 2,100 preventative actions in high Oahu surf. In powerful waves with up to 12-foot faces today on Oahu’s South Shore, Honolulu Ocean Safety personnel made 271 rescues, and took over 2,100 preventative rescues, the Honolulu Emergency Services Department reported shortly after 4 p.m. Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii Island

Clamping down: County could return to beach closures amid coronavirus spike. Closing parks and beaches and canceling the Ironman World Championship are among measures being considered by Mayor Mitch Roth as the administration works to tamp down a surging coronavirus pandemic on the island. West Hawaii Today.

Help Arrives At Kona Community Hospital. Thirty-three critical care nurses and three respiratory therapists were welcomed to Kona Community Hospital by leadership and nursing managers on Monday morning. Big Island Video News.

Relief arrives at HMC: 11 nurses, respiratory therapist will help ease ‘exhaustion, frustration’. Twelve relief workers showed up Monday at Hilo Medical Center for an eight-week stint to help care for COVID-19 patients. Tribune-Herald.

Big Island Hospital Offers Booster Shots to Certain Individuals. Queen’s North Hawai´i Community Hospital announced that as of Tuesday, Aug. 17, it was offering the booster to patients who qualify. It is the first healthcare facility in Hawai´i County to offer the shot publicly. Big Island Now.

Council members hear pitch on Sentinel Landscape designation. Hawaii County might seek a partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies in an attempt to obtain federal conservation funds. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Sato named parks deputy director. Mayor Michael Victorino has appointed Marci Sato as deputy director of the county Department of Parks & Recreation. Maui News.

The VA Is Shopping For Land For A ‘One-Stop Shop’ Clinic In Maui. The VA would own the new facility, which would consolidate medical care, mental health and benefits for veterans on the Valley Isle. Civil Beat.

Lottery Applications Being Taken for Buying Home in New Maui Workforce Complex. Alaula Builders is working through the last steps of the permitting process and is expecting to break ground this summer on Hale Kaiola, 20 affordable workforce duplexes on three acres in North Kīhei. Maui Now.

Median housing prices surpass $1 million for 3 months in a row. Maui County single-family home median sales prices have surpassed $1 million for three months in a row, capping the first half of the year, which shows record or near record-setting medians each month. Maui News.

Kauai

Marines fire Naval Strike Missiles from Kauai. During the two-week Large Scale Exercise 2021, which ended Monday, groups of Hawaii-based artillery Marines came ashore at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai via big hovercraft and MV-22 tilt-rotor Ospreys. Star-Advertiser.

Kauaʻi Mayor Says 'We Need People to Stay Healthy'. Mayor of Kauaʻi Derek Kawakami is urging residents and visitors to heed the directive from State Health Director Libby Char: mask up and get vaccinated. Hawaii Public Radio.

Island health care must attract Kaua‘i talent, administrators say. A long-term-care facility is offering tuition reimbursement for anyone completing the certified nursing assistant course and going to work there. Garden Island.

Project Vision’s mobile shower continues to make the rounds. Project Vision and Hiehie partnered with several groups to anchor a weekly schedule of shower appearances following the close of the county’s Shelter-In-Place sites across the island. Garden Island.

Hawaii bids aloha to 2013, news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Kona luau (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

Hawaii's economy prospered broadly in 2012, but it particularly surged in two areas: tourism and real estate. Star-Advertiser.

Schatz accepting resumes for Washington, isles staff jobs Star-Advertiser.

Campaign Cash Already Fueling Hawaii's 2014 Senate Race. Civil Beat.

All public school juniors in Hawaii will take the ACT college entrance exam this spring in an effort to boost college-going rates and better gauge student preparedness for life after high school. Star-Advertiser.

The National Park Service says it remains concerned about the State Historic Preservation Division's ability to review projects and respond to permits once federal oversight ends. Civil Beat.

Inouye's death capped year of political shifts. Star-Advertiser.

Every year, like clockwork, the four county mayors join a procession of state agencies, the Judiciary and the University of Hawaii to make their funding requests at a joint session of the state House Finance Committee and Senate Ways and Means Committee. But not this coming year. West Hawaii Today.

As the northeastern United States digs out from one snow storm and prepares for another, the timing is perfect for Hawaii to benefit from hosting the first PGA Tour event of the season. Pacific Business News.

The eBossWatch panel of workplace experts has selected and ranked the fourth annual list of America’s Worst Bosses. Two Hawaii employers made the list, including Hawaii Professional HomeCare Services owner Carolyn Frutoz-De Harne (ranked 38th worst) and Kauai Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho (ranked 39th worst). Iseri-Carvalho was recently was voted out of office. Hawaii Reporter.

As national debate and focus on gun control grows in the wake of recent violent shooting incidents, Hawaii, with some of the nation’s toughest gun-related laws, keeps a tight rein on gun ownership, registration, transportation and use. West Hawaii Today.

State roundup for December 31. Associated Press.

Oahu

Kirk Caldwell may have been elected Honolulu mayor because of his support for the city rail project, but as leader of Hawaii’s most populous island he'll also have a host of other issues to tackle. Civil Beat.

Mayor-elect Kirk Caldwell has announced key members of his cabinet. Civil Beat.

As the United States weighs further troop reductions in a waning Afghanistan War, Schofield Barracks is preparing for two major deployments there sometime next year. Star-Advertiser.

Sour relations are brewing over the future of the Makaweli Poi Mill. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii

Pu’u O’o: Three-decade eruption of Kilauea yields scientific discoveries. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Maui County Democrats are officially seeking a party member to fill the Central Maui Senate seat vacated when Shan Tsutsui accepted the job of lieutenant governor last week. Maui News.

Maui County Democrats say any Democrat in “good standing” and who lives in Senate District 5 — which includes Wailuku, Waihee, and Kahului — is welcome to apply for the seat vacated by state Senator Shan Tsutsui. Associated Press.

Newly appointed Lieutenant Governor Shan Tsutsui of Maui arrived at Kahului Airport this morning to a surprise homecoming welcome from family and friends. Maui Now.

Mayor Alan Arakawa signed the Maui Island Plan on Friday, a week after the Maui County Council passed the guide for island planning by a 5-4 vote. Maui News.

The president of the National Audubon Society visited the mountain slopes of Haleakala on Maui Thursday to bring attention to a critical opportunity to preserve endangered Hawaii birds. Star-Advertiser.

Maui bid aloha to U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye on Saturday. Maui News.

Kauai

After years of struggling with a large number of vacancies, the Kaua‘i P olice Department will close 2012 with only three open positions, according to KPD officers who briefed the Kaua‘i County Council last week. Garden Island.

The Kaua‘i Police Commission elected a new chair and vice chair for 2013 during a Friday meeting. Garden Island.

Top Hawaii Headlines: Friday morning edition

Straw huts, hula dancers and kids with hula hoops were all on display last night in the White House's backyard -- not the typical congressional picnic.

The White House luau was actually not a concept cooked up by the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, though it and the rest of the state likely will benefit from the hula-hoopla it generated.

Hawaii businesses may donate the same amounts to political candidates as individuals, according to a Thursday ruling by the state Intermediate Court of Appeals upholding a lower court's decision.

About 6.9 percent fewer visitors came to the Islands in May and spent $133 million, or 15 percent, less than a year ago, but industry leaders were encouraged that the decline in tourism seems to be slowing.

Matson and the unions representing ship captains and other crew members have agreed to continue contract talks today in San Francisco, averting for at least a day the threat of a shipping strike as contracts expired last night.

Saying a 22 percent raise "flies in the face of reason and common sense" during tough economic times, a Hawaii County councilman wants the County Salary Commission to roll back council pay hikes that went into effect last year.

Hawaii County Councilman Kelly Greenwell recently sent a letter to President Barack Obama, asking the Hawaii-born commander-in-chief to consider sending prisoners to be released from the prison at the naval base in Guantanamo Bay to the Big Island.

The Arc of Hilo and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are teaming up to process local food products with cutting-edge "green" energy technology.

The Hawaii County Council's recent reorganization violated Hawaii's Sunshine Law and stemmed from a lack of respect and communication among members, rather than a turf battle, said the architect of the leadership change.

The Maui County Department of Water Supply declared a drought watch Thursday for Upcountry, requesting residents and businesses from Haiku to Kanaio to voluntarily reduce water consumption by 5 percent.

Gov. Linda Lingle isn’t planning on releasing $750,000 for expansion of the county’s Black Pot Beach Park, Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair Laura Thielen said this week.