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Suspected DUI wreck closes Palani Road
DRIVER ARRESTED PREVIOUSLY IN FOSTER CHILD’S DEATH
Alcosiba
Rapid
ohia death
discovered at
Kalopa State
Rec. Area
BY WEST HAWAII TODAY STAFF
Fissure 8 has shown minor activity since it died down. No spattering or glow was visible during a drone flyover on
Sept. 11. Steam in background is due to recent rainfall. USGS/COURTESY PHOTO
Trial for ex-officer begins
BUDDEMEYER ACCUSED OF KILLING CYCLIST
INDEX Annie’s Mailbox . . . . . . .5B Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7B Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6B Nation & World . . . . . . . . .3A Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4A Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1B
HI 87 LO 75 WEATHER, PAGE 5A
VOL. 50, NO. 276 16 PAGES
Hawaii Holistic Dentistry
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INSIDE
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Teachers rally
for ‘yes’ on
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50 YEARS
AGO TODAY
A look inside West
Hawaii Today’s
past, running
every Wednesday
PAGE 6A
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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2018 WESTHAWAIITODAY.COM 75¢
KAILUA-KONA — A
suspected drunken driver
was the culprit of a
downed utility pole that
snarled traffic on Palani
Road for about 16 hours
on Tuesday.
The crash, reported at
12:45 a.m. Tuesday on
the curve near Makua
Lani Christian Academy,
also knocked out power
to about 1,500 Hawaii
Electric Light Co. customers
in the area, a Hawaii
Electric Light Co. spokeswoman
said.
Hawaii Police Maj.
Robert Wagner said
44-yearold
Honokaa
resident
Chasity
Alcosiba
was the
lone occupant
in the
vehicle at the time of the
crash. No injuries were
listed in a police report.
Alcosiba was driving
the makai-bound vehicle
when it apparently veered
off the roadway and struck
a utility pole, according to
police. The force of the
crash severed the pole,
causing it to crash onto
BY CHELSEA JENSEN
WEST HAWAII TODAY
cjensen@westhawaiitoday.com
A HELCO crew member detours traffic
off Palani Road onto Uluaoa Street in
Kealakehe. CHELSEA JENSEN/WEST HAWAII TODAY SEE CRASH PAGE 5A
Jody
Buddemeyer
gets
emotional
during
opening
statements
describing
the accident
that killed
cyclist
Jeffrey
Surnow
Tuesday
in Circuit
Court. LAURA
RUMINSKI/WEST
HAWAII TODAY
KEALAKEKUA — A jury seated in
3rd Circuit Court listened to opening
statements by the state and defense
in the trial for a former Hawaii police
officer accused of negligent homicide
after allegedly fatally striking a cyclist
while on-duty in March of 2015.
On Tuesday, 12 jurors and two
alternates were selected. Afterward,
Deputy Prosecutor Kauanoe Jackson
presented her case. Brian De Lima,
defense counsel for Jody Buddemeyer,
followed with his opening statement.
Charges stem from the March 1,
2015 crash where the state alleges
while operating a police subsidized
vehicle, Buddemeyer struck cyclist
Jeffrey Surnow, 69, of Michigan,
from behind who was riding east
on Waikoloa Road.
An indictment on Oct. 11, 2016,
charged Buddemeyer with negligent
BY TIFFANY DEMASTERS
WEST HAWAII TODAY
tdemasters@westhawaiitoday.com
SEE TRIAL PAGE 5A
KAILUA-KONA — Rapid
ohia death has been detected
in trees at Kalopa State
Recreation Area on the
Hamakua Coast.
During a regularly scheduled
quarterly aerial assessment
of forests on Hawaii
Island in late July, spotters
detected more trees “symptomatic”
for the presence
of C. lukuohia, the fungus
more commonly known
as rapid ohia death, in the
Kalopa State Recreation
Area, according to a Tuesday
news release from the state
Department of Land and
Natural Resources.
After the helicopter surveys
utilizing digital mobile
sketch mapping, ground
crews from the Big Island
Invasive Species Committee
followed up by taking ground
samples.
“This detection is roughly
12 miles from the nearest
known occurrence of
the fungus on the east side
of the island. We sampled
three trees in the recreation
area and three trees in the
SEE OHIA PAGE 7A
Lava viewing site takes shape
PROMOTING TOURISM MOVES FORWARD NOW THAT THE FLOW HAS STOPPED
HILO — “Managing expectations”
will be key to the success
of a public-private partnership
to create a lava viewing
area now that the lava flow has
subsided.
County administration on
Tuesday laid out its plans to create
a lava viewing platform and
a short trail just past Lava Tree
State Park near the “Y” where
Highway 132 meets Pohoiki
Road. From there, people will
be able to see the vast expanse
of fresh lava and Fissure 8,
which is currently inactive.
The project is still a few
months away, as one component
must go through the permitting
process and another out
for competitive bids. The cost
has not yet been determined,
but officials have asked for
funding in the county’s disaster
relief package to the state
Legislature.
Mayor Harry Kim had
sought to open up a viewing
area much sooner, while the
lava was active, but consultations
with the Hawaii Volcano
Observatory and others convinced
the county it was too
dangerous.
“A few weeks into the event,
BY NANCY COOK LAUER
WEST HAWAII TODAY
ncook-lauer@westhawaiitoday.com
SEE LAVA PAGE 6A
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