MAYOR EMPHASIZES NEED TO EXPEDITE CREATION OF BYPASS ROUTE OR ROUTES
KAILUA-KONA — Traffic was
backed up to a stand-still from
Kawaihae Road to the Waikoloa
Beach Resort after emergency
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2018 WESTHAWAIITODAY.COM 75¢
responders closed junctions at
Waikoloa Road and Daniel K.
Inouye Highway due to a brush
fire Wednesday afternoon.
Approximately 1:36 p.m.,
HONOLULU — Jessica
Tilton wanted to see lava
flowing into the ocean off
Hawaii’s Big Island but
thought her sightseeing
boat got too close to the
explosive phenomenon.
“It was too close for comfort,”
the 20-year-old from
Washington, Illinois, told
reporters Tuesday from her
Honolulu hospital bed.
She could not estimate
how close the boat was but
said she expected it would
be farther away.
Tilton was on a July 16
tour with her twin 15-yearold
sisters and father when
an explosion caused by the
lava sent molten rock crashing
through the roof of the
boat, injuring 23 people —
her the most seriously. The
others had minor burns and
scrapes.
A boulder of lava about 2
feet (0.6 meters) in diameter
hit her, breaking her thigh
bone and pelvis and leaving
her with other injuries.
She was airlifted to
Honolulu, where she underwent
several surgeries and
is working on rehabilitation
that focuses on trying to sit
up and get into a wheelchair.
Other surgeries were
expected, and it was not
clear when she will be able
to leave the hospital.
Tilton and her family
went on the lava tour on
the second-to-the-last day
of their Hawaii vacation celebrating
her parents’ 25th
wedding anniversary. Her
mother, who gets seasick,
stayed on land.
Sitting near a railing,
Tilton turned to cover one of
her sisters when the glowing
rock hit.
“I thought it was encased
in lava,” she recalled. “I
thought I was dying.”
Two surgeons who were
on the boat came to her aid,
along with an emergency
HILO — 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 on 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
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INSIDE
RESTORING
VITALITY
Goodbye,
fountain grass,
hello native
vegetation
PAGE 6A
▼
THERE AND
BACK AGAIN
Famous novel
‘The Hobbit’
comes to life
on the stage
PAGE 7A
▼
HI 87 LO 76 WEATHER, PAGE 7A
VOL. 50, NO. 214 22 PAGES
Seek alternate route
BY JOHN BURNETT
HAWAII TRIBUNE-HERALD
The northbound lane is closed for road work on
Highway 11 last Wednesday near Piimauna Drive
in Volcano. HOLLYN JOHNSON/TRIBUNE-HERALD SEE ROUTES PAGE 5A
Tourist injured by lava bomb: ‘I thought I was dying’
BY JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Jessica Tilton wipes away tears while being interviewed from
a hospital bed Tuesday about an explosion caused by lava
oozing into the ocean that sent molten rock crashing through
the roof of a sightseeing boat she was on. JENNIFER SINCO
SEE INJURED PAGE A6 KELLEHER/AP PHOTO
Amnesty for
junkers
COUNTY PICKING UP
DISPOSAL FEE FOR OLD CARS
BY NANCY COOK LAUER
WEST HAWAII TODAY
ncook-lauer@westhawaiitoday.com
HILO — The county has instituted
an amnesty program for owners seeking
to get rid of their unwanted vehicle.
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 on the program can be
found at http://www.hawaiizerowaste.
org/recycle/automotive. Registered
vehicle owners are encouraged to submit
their applications early, because
there’s a limited number of disposal
appointments.
SEE JUNKERS PAGE 5B
Fire blazing near Waikoloa Village
BRUSH FIRE CLOSES HIGHWAY 190
BY TIFFANY DEMASTERS
WEST HAWAII TODAY
tdemasters@westhawaiitoday.com
Left: Flames
can be seen
from the
Waikoloa
Post Office
Wednesday
evening.
LAURA
RUMINSKI/WEST
HAWAII TODAY
Below:
Traffic is at
a standstill
near
Kawaihae
Wednesday.
RICK WINTERS
/ WEST HAWAII
TODAY
SEE FIRE PAGE 4A
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