Thursday, August 2, 2018
Hwy 11 bypass mulled
Mayor emphasizes need to expedite creation of alternate route
By JOHN BURNETT
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
The state and county are
looking at the possibility of
building a bypass route or
routes as the condition of
Highway 11 near Volcano
Village and Hawaii Volcanoes
National Park deteriorates
because of
near-constant
seismic activity
at the summit of
Kilauea volcano.
Mayor
Harry Kim said
Wednesday
he returned to work less
than 24 hours after getting a
heart defibrillator surgically
implanted because he considered
a meeting about the
issue too important to miss.
“We have a possibly very
serious situation in regard
to Highway 11,” Kim said.
“If it’s compromised, and
we’re not ready for it, not
only the whole community
of Ka‘u — Naalehu, Pahala
and elsewhere — even Hilo
people will be affected if
we don’t expedite this.
“For example, I called the
(Department of Education) the
other week and asked, ‘How
many of your teachers that
teach in Pahala and Naalehu
live in Hilo or Puna?’ And
I think the figure was close
to 70 percent. What are they
going to do? Let’s talk about
police officers. Let’s talk
about hospital people. Let’s
talk about all the people in
Ka‘u that have to commute
because they work in Hilo.
And there’s a lot of them.
… The current detour’s over
a hundred miles, one way.
‘Hilo Massacre’ commemorated
Index
Big Isle history B4
Classified B6
Comics B5
Commentary A6
UNWANTED VEHICLES
Amnesty
program
underway
KUCHARSKI
Issue No. 214
20 Pages in
2 Sections
Today’s
weather
Page A2
Community A8
Crossword B4
Cryptoquote B4
Dear Abby B4
Horoscope B4
Island Beat A10
Letters A6
Nation A4
IN THE PICTURE
• Ron Auwae, center, and
other International Longshore
and Warehouse Union
members on Wednesday at
Hilo Harbor stand in front
of a mural commemorating
the 80th anniversary of the
Hilo Massacre. See a full
photo of the mural on
page A9 of today’s edition.
Photo by HOLLYN JOHNSON/
Tribune-Herald
Obituaries A2
Sports B1
State A3
Surf Report A2
Internet
Visit us on the Web at:
www.hawaiitribune-herald.com
KILAUEA ERUPTION
KIM
See BYPASS Page A7
‘Fly neighborly’: Meeting set
to talk about helicopter noise
By STEPHANIE SALMONS
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
The state Department of
Transportation’s Airports
Division later this month
will host a public information
meeting regarding
commercial helicopter flights
over residential areas, the
DOT announced Wednesday.
Representatives from the
DOT, the Federal Aviation
Administration and Hawaii
Helicopter Association will
be at the meeting to receive
input from the community
and answer questions.
The meeting is scheduled
for 2-4 p.m. Tuesday,
Aug. 14, at Nani Mau
Gardens, 421 Makalika
St. in Hilo. A number of
residents told the Tribune-
Herald they plan to attend.
Pahoa resident
Sharon Lee is one.
For years, Lee said,
noise pollution from tour
helicopters, taking a route
over her home in the HOLLYN JOHNSON/Tribune-Herald file photo
A Blue Hawaiian helicopter unloads its passengers at Hilo
See NOISE Page A5 International Airport.
By TOM CALLIS
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Eighty years ago, a peaceful protest
took a tragic turn as police
opened fire on an unarmed crowd
of union workers and their supporters
at the docks of Hilo Bay in 1938.
The day would become known
as the “Hilo Massacre” or “Bloody
Monday” after 50 protesters were
hospitalized with wounds from
live ammunition and bayonets.
But the sacrifices made that day
by the more than 200 marchers, who
were supporting strikers in Honolulu,
would not be in vain as such acts of
solidarity would build a better future
for workers in the islands, speakers
noted Wednesday during the unveiling
of a mural depicting the protest.
And it’s a lesson representatives
of the International
Longshore and Warehouse Union
hope will not be forgotten.
“I’m overwhelmed with appreciation
See COMMEMORATED Page A9
By NANCY
COOK LAUER
West Hawaii Today
The county instituted
an amnesty
program for owners
seeking to get rid
of their unwanted
vehicles.
Through
Oct. 31, the
county will
pay the $680
disposal fee
for one vehicle
per owner.
The owner —
who must present the
title and fill out an
application form —
is responsible for the
towing and removal
costs from the vehicle’s
location to the
designated scrap
metal recycler. The
county will pay only
the disposal costs
directly to the county’s
existing scrap
metal contractors.
The contractor,
Big Island Scrap
Metal, has locations
in Kailua-Kona and
Keaau. The application
and more
information about
the program can
be found at www.
hawaiizerowaste.org/
recycle/automotive/.
Registered vehicle
owners are encouraged
to
submit their
applications
early because
there’s a limited
number
of disposal
appointments.
The new program
is financed through
the $12 disposal
fee vehicle owners
pay on their annual
automobile registration.
No property
tax money is used
for the program,
said Environmental
Management Director
Bill Kucharski.
The amnesty
program is just one
component of a
See AMNESTY Page A7
Kona man sets freediving record
IN SPORTS,
PAGE B1
/www.hawaiitribune-herald.com
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