Marcus Cook crosses the finish line at Ironman Texas earlier this year.
Index
State reports no cases
of polio-like disease
Big Isle history B4
Classified B6
Comics B5
Commentary A4
WASTEWATER
Manager reports several
steps already were taken;
odor ‘is still an issue’
Issue No. 285
20 Pages in
2 Sections
Courtesy photo
Today’s
weather
Page A2
Community A6
Crossword B4
Cryptoquote B4
Dear Abby B4
Horoscope B4
Letters A4
Nation A3
Obituaries A2
Religion A5
Sports B1
State A3
Surf Report A2
Friday, October 12, 2018
By CHELSEA JENSEN
West Hawaii Today
KAILUA-KONA —
Hawaii health officials
said Thursday that it
seems the state remains
free of cases of acute
flaccid myelitis — a
polio-like illness that’s
infected dozens of people,
most frequently children,
throughout the nation.
Some 38 cases of acute
flaccid myelitis, or AFM,
have been confirmed
in 16 states through
Sept. 30, according to
the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention,
which has been monitoring
and investigating
an increasing number
of AFM cases since
Internet
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www.hawaiitribune-herald.com
2014. States reporting
cases include Illinois,
Washington, Colorado,
Minnesota and Texas.
Anna Koethe, public
health information
coordinator for the state
Department of Health,
said Thursday that the
department has “not
received any verified
See DISEASE Page A8
OKUBO
POINDEXTER
See DAIRY Page A9
By JAY REEVES and BRENDAN FARRINGTON
Associated Press
PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Linda Marquardt
rode out Hurricane Michael with her husband
at their home in Mexico Beach,
Fla. When their house filled with surging
ocean water, they fled upstairs.
Now their home is full of mud and everywhere
they look there’s utter devastation
in their Florida Panhandle community:
fishing boats tossed like toys, roofs lifted
off of buildings and pine trees snapped
like matchsticks by 155 mph winds.
Row after row of beachfront homes
were so obliterated by Michael’s surging
seas and howling winds that only slabs of
concrete in the sand remain, a testament
Associated Press
Michael Williams, 70, waves to passing motorists
while looking for food and water as downed trees
prevent him from driving out of his damaged
home with his family in the aftermath of Hurricane
Michael on Thursday in Springfield, Fla. “I don’t
know what I’m going to do,” Williams said.
By CAMERON MICULKA
West Hawaii Today
KAILUA-KONA —
Three years ago,
when Marcus Cook’s
business sold, his mentor
called him into his office.
His mentor revealed
he was dying of cancer,
he said, and, with Cook
weighing 500 pounds,
told Cook he was “dying
from your choices.”
At that point, he
made Cook promise
to get healthy.
“‘I would do anything to
be you,’” Cook recalled his
mentor saying. “‘Because
I can’t beat cancer, but
I can beat being fat.’”
It was a tough discussion,
said the Houston
man, but he promised
to make the change.
About 300 pounds, three
marathons, six half-Ironman
races and one full
Ironman later, Cook on
Saturday will take to the
course along with some
of the world’s top athletes
for the 2018 Ironman
World Championship.
His online fundraising
page for the Ironman
Foundation shows he’s
raised $100,260 for the
foundation. The foundation
named Cook a
member of the Ironman
Foundation Athlete Team,
including his story among
a list of inspiring athletes
from around the globe.
But getting to this
point, Cook said Thursday,
wasn’t about one moment
Dairy
working
to reduce
discharges
By STEPHANIE SALMONS
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Big Island Dairy officials say
steps are being taken to reduce the
possibility of future wastewater
discharges at the Ookala facility.
Residents of Ookala have complained
for several years about
releases of manure-laden water into
nearby gulches that
run through or next
to the community.
A discharge in May
released nearly 2.3
million gallons of rain
and wastewater during
a period of three days,
and in August, heavy
rain from Hurricane
Lane caused a wastewater
pond at the dairy
to overflow, sending
more untreated effluent
into a nearby gulch.
General manager
Steve Manning, who took the
helm in April, said the dairy has
“already done a lot to prevent
future spills or future discharges.”
Big Island Dairy reduced the
number of cows it is milking “significantly”
to help maintain the
wastewater lagoon levels, he said.
And the facility no longer has a
heifer development station above
the dairy, which means that water
or manure waste is no longer entering
the lagoon system. Removing
‘Unimaginable
destruction’
Monstrous Hurricane Michael
wreaks havoc in Fla. Panhandle
See HURRICANE Page A8
One step at a time
Ironman
participant
says ‘anything
is possible’
after losing
300 pounds
See IRONMAN Page A7
Hilo, Konawaena are gold standard
Story in
Sports
• • •
PAGE B1
/www.hawaiitribune-herald.com