A winter storm expected to reach the Islands today will shower the state with periods of heavy rainfall throughout the weekend, posing a threat of flooding, especially on O’ahu and Kaua’i.

The National Weather Service yesterday extended a statewide flash-flood watch from tonight through 4 a.m. Sunday.

“There’s a threat for serious flooding across the Islands,” National Weather Service forecaster Chris Brenchley said.

In Honolulu, the city’s Department of Emergency Management urged residents to exercise extreme caution.

“Based on information we received from the National Weather Service this afternoon an area of unstable weather will develop off of Kaua’i, creating an intense period of heavy rains and possible flooding,” Emergency Management Director Mel Kaku said in a news release. “The weather service modeling of these conditions shows that O’ahu and Kaua’i are in the primary threat and hazard area. We may begin experiencing the effects of this storm system beginning Friday morning with the heaviest showers and increased potential for flooding on Saturday night through Sunday morning.”

Residents on O’ahu’s windward coast could experience storm conditions similar to those seen during the 2006 March floods, including road closures, flooding and minor landslides, Kaku said. However, he added that the approaching storm is expected to pass through much quicker than the 2006 storm.

(Source: Honolulu Advertiser)

A man who took it upon himself to help repair Kaua’i’s world-famous north shore is facing a government fine for his efforts.

Bill Summers, 42, is accused of bow hunting without a permit on Kaua’i’s Na Pali Coast Trail, where he says he intended to kill goats that contribute to the trail’s erosion and create unsafe hiking conditions. He also was cited for having a weapon on state land.

He plans to fight the citations in court Jan. 7. They carry fines of up to $500 and 30 days in jail.

“I’m not going to pay the fine,” he said. “They’ve annoyed me too greatly. If they’re not going to let me do it, they’re going to have to go out there and do it themselves.”

The state argues that Summers is not registered as a volunteer, and he’s not authorized to do trail maintenance, Department of Land and Natural Resources spokeswoman Deborah Ward said.

Trail advocate Arius Hopman said a little cooperation from the state could go a long way.

“They could easily turn this thing around by legitimizing Bill,” he said. “He has spent his savings and time preserving people’s health and possibly saving lives.”

The state allows bow hunting at Na Pali Coast State Wilderness Park year-round with a permit, but doesn’t authorize rifle hunting due to safety issues, Ward said. The state has closed the trail in the past for some rifle hunts, but didn’t do so this year.

“We need more hunters out there … ” Summers said. “The first step is reducing the number of goats and hogs.”

With no natural predators, the populations of feral goats and pigs are spiraling out of control, he said.

Nearly three times as many hunting permits were issued annually from 2004 through 2007 compared with this year, according to state records.

Between 76 and 128 goats were killed annually in those four years, compared with 17 so far in 2008. The number of pig killings also has dropped, with none hunted in 2008.

(Source: Honolulu Advertiser)
(Photo Source: BillSummers.info)

Photo courtesy of Honolulu Weekly

Amid indictment rumors, judge denies Pflueger request to boot AG

With rumors swirling around Lihu‘e’s 5th Circuit Courthouse that a grand jury was set to convene and indict Jimmy Pflueger for his role in the 2006 Ka Loko Reservoir Dam disaster, a motion from his attorney seeking to recuse state Attorney General Mark Bennett and disqualify his office from the investigation on grounds of a conflict of interest was denied yesterday by Chief Judge Randal Valenciano.

In oral arguments, Pflueger attorney Bill McCorriston sought to prevent a potential grand jury from hearing evidence, alleging that because the state is “in the mix” as a defendant in civil lawsuits to be heard starting in February 2009, any criminal charges should instead be handled by a special independent investigator or the county of Kaua‘i prosecuting attorney — “anybody with clear eyes.”

“It looks bad, it smells bad, it is bad,” McCorriston said of the “open and obvious” conflict.

He cited the AG’s recent referral of the investigation of the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism and its Director Ted Liu, who allegedly awarded a government contract to the third-ranked bidding company, to the Honolulu prosecutor as an example of how things should be handled.

When asked yesterday if her office would be able and willing to take on a Ka Loko criminal case, county prosecutor-elect Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho said it was premature to discuss that possibility because potential conflicts of interest, due to her role as County Council member or other factors, could not be identified until after she was able to look closely at the investigation.

However, when asked to envision a scenario in which her office had no conflicts, Iseri-Carvalho said, “If the state takes the case to grand jury, it’s difficult for a new agency to come in and pick up the ball from there and continue the case.”

Read more …

(Source: Kauai Garden Island News)
(Photo Source: Honolulu Weekly)

Related News
Second grand jury probes dam (Honolulu Advertiser)

Storm water runoff creating potentially unhealthy conditions

The state is advising people in north and east Kauai to stay out of flood waters and storm water runoff due to possible unsanitary conditions.

The Department of Health’s Clean Water Branch says heavy rains have caused muddy runoff from Hanalei Bay to Nawiliwili.

It says overflowing cesspools, pesticides, animal fecal matter, dead animals, chemicals and flood debris could taint the water.

The state is urging people to stay out of coastal waters if they are muddy and brown.

(Source: Honolulu Star-Bulletin)

A San Diego jury has convicted a man of murder for fatally injuring a professional surfer with a punch during a scuffle.

Seth Cravens was convicted Tuesday and could face life in prison when he is sentenced in January.

The 22-year-old Cravens said he acted in self-defense when he punched Emery Kauanui (KOW’-ah-noo-ee) in May 2007.

The surfer suffered severe head trauma when he fell outside his mother’s home in the wealthy seaside community of La Jolla; he died a few days later.

An attorney for Cravens, Mary Ellen Attridge, declined to comment to reporters.

Prosecutors say the scuffle stemmed from a dispute that started at a bar.

Four other people initially were charged with murder but pleaded guilty to lesser charges and were sentenced in September to between 90 and 249 days in jail.

(Source: San Francisco Chronicle)

Related News
Surfer Murder (Video & Photo) Seth Cravens Guilty (The Post Chronicle)

Two hikers and a couple were rescued late Monday afternoon when family members reported them overdue earlier that morning.

According to Captain Ken D’Attilio, pilot for Inter-Island Helicopters, after the girlfriend of one of the hikers — reportedly Kaua‘i residents in their 20s — became concerned, she was told to call Inter-Island Helicopters, which regularly performs rescue operations on the north side of the island.

Sometime between 2:30 p.m. and 3 p.m., Inter-Island received the call and headed to the Na Pali coastline to look for the hikers — or for an S.O.S. sign in the sand, something D’Attilio regularly checks for every time he flies over the area.

From the rain-swept, turbulent skies, the pilot — flying along with his son, Joel — spotted the S.O.S. sign drawn in the sand, along with three hikers and a dog at the beach at the end of the trail at Kalalau.

The additional two rescue subjects were described as a Czech couple in their early 30s. The woman had injured her ankle “so badly she could barely walk,” D’Attilio said in a phone interview.

D’Attilio’s son Joel was dropped off to search for the unaccounted-for hiker, who had left the immediate area, while his father flew the couple, the hiker and the dog — a Dalmatian D’Attilio called “a great rider” — back to safety.

“It was pretty turbulent up there,” said D’Attilio. “There were some 40 mph gusts.”

A sudden unexpected wind forced the pilot to abort one landing attempt and take his MD-530-FF in for a second pass.

After dropping off the three hikers, their equipment and the dog, D’Attilio returned to pick up the remaining man and his son.

D’Attilio said that the hikers likely weren’t lost, but rather stranded as a result of fast-rising water in streams and rivers in the area.

The DLNR has suspended permits for Napali State park access due to stormy weather.

(Source: Kauai Garden Island News)