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Monday, April 29, 2024

Kaʻū News Briefs April 29, 2024


Kīlauea Crater seen from an overlook near Volcano House. With a rise in the number of earthquakes, Chain of Craters Road is closed from the intersection at Crater Rim Drive. NPS Photo
WITH THE INCREASE IN EARTHQUAKES, CHAIN OF CRATERS ROAD closed at 5 p.m on Monday. Other locations that "could put visitors and staff at risk if the volcano erupts," are also off limits, within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park,  following significant spike in quakes. Temporary closures involve:
    Chain of Craters Road from intersection at Crater Rim Drive;
    Hilina Pali Road, which is closed to all use. Kulanaokuaiki Campground is closed.
    Overnight camping, which is suspended for all coastal sites, Nāpau and Pepeiao Cabin.
    Kaʻū Desert Trail, which is closed from the Footprints Exhibit;
    Maunaiki Trail, which is closed.
    "Safety is our main focus, and the uncertainty of where an eruption could break out increases risk," said Chief Ranger Jack Corrao. "Elevated volcanic gases, dangerous lava activity, damaging earthquakes and lava-ignited wildfire are all potential hazards associated with an eruption."
    Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park reported: "According to USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, it is not possible at this time to know if this increase in activity will lead to an eruption in the near future or simply remain confined below ground. However, the gradual strengthening of seismic swarms suggests
Thermal Hotspot area near Puhimau Crater on Chain of Craters Road.
NPS Photo by Janice Wei

that an eruption in the summit region of Kīlauea or beneath the upper East Rift Zone in the park is one potential outcome."
    About 360 shallow earthquakes in 24 hours ping-ponged between areas south of Kīlauea caldera to the upper East Rift Zone across Chain of Craters Road near Puhimau Crater, "adding to the uncertainty of where an eruption could occur. Their magnitude has ranged from M-1 to M-3." The Park reported that "Increased seismicity has not impacted traffic safety or infrastructure projects at the summit."
  The park statement noted that "Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park encompasses two of the world's most active volcanoes, making it distinct among national parks. In 2022, the park closed the summit of Mauna Loa weeks ahead of its historic and nearly two-week eruption. As a result, no evacuations or search and rescue missions were necessary."
    Many popular areas in the park remain open, including Kīlauea Visitor Center, overlooks along Crater Rim Trail, Volcano House, and Nāhuku lava tube. Park visitors are urged to plan ahead and check the park website for any closure or hazard alerts at www.nps.gov/hawaiivolcanoes.


DANNY EDER IS THE RECIPIENT OF THE 20TH ANNUAL CITIZEN-SCHOLAR AWARD for Kaʻū High School, from Hawai'i Lodging & Tourism Association, state Department of Education and Honolulu Star-Advertiser newspaper. He was one in 42 high school senior students honored statewide last Friday, April 26 at ceremonies at the Prince Waikiki hotel in Honolulu.
     Mufi Hanneman, President & CEO of Hawai'i Lodging & Tourism, and founder of Punalu'u Bake Shop in Nāʻālehu, gave Eder the award. Hanneman said the students are saluted "for their academic and cocurricular accomplishments. But equally important is that we are saluting them for their civic engagement, participation in community activities and leadership in serving others."
    Eder is a National Honor Society officer, Gaming Club officer, and Church Volunteer. He will attend Hawai'i Community College. He is the son of Bert and Tina Eder of Pāhala. For becoming a Citizen-Scholar, Eder receives a roundtrip ticket to the mainland from Southwest Airlines.

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HAWAI'I IS LISTED AS THE WORST STATE FOR NURSES in the country, according to a WalletHub
study. It ranked Hawai'i lowest in annual salary, when adjusted for cost of living. It ranked Hawai'i lowest in a metric called Opportunity & Competition Rank. It ranked Hawai'i third lowest in nursing job openings per capita, and in the fewest health care facilities per capita.
    The top two states for nursing, listed by WalletHub, are Washington, which has very high median earning for nurses in hospitals and clinics and care homes and also for licensed practical and vocational nurses. It has some of the top nursing schools in the country. Maine is second, with one of the largest number of nursing and residential care facilities per capita. A low cost Bachelor of Nursing Science online program helps to achieve nursing degrees with little debt.

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UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION AGENTS are wrapping up a series of programs to help coffee farmers and are asking for feedback to help plan for the future. Andrea Kawabata and Matthew Miyahira note that the final Coffee-related Research and Management Update presenter this season is Dr.
Dr. Tracie Matsumoto works with longan
 in photo and also with Kaʻū Coffee.
Tracie Matsumoto of USDA-ARS-PBARC, on Tuesday, April 30 at noon. She will provide an update on coffee germplasm and the cupping of rust resistant varieties.
   The archived webinars for this season are:
    Using Priaxor for CLR Management: Chemistry Review and Best Usage Guidelines - with Mike Ravalin of BASF
    Coffee leaf rust research updates and pesticides registered in coffee w/ Julie Coughlin and Zhiqiang Cheng of CTAHR
    Progress on coffee breeding for CLR-resistance w/ Ming-Li Wang of HARC
    Coffee tissue culture work w/ Steve Starnes of UH Hilo
    Coffee Leaf Rust in Puerto Rico: Patterns and Pathogens w/ Paul Bayman of Univ. of Puerto Rico
    Black twig borer w/ Rob Curtiss of Washington State University and Bob Smith of Smith Farms; Coffee pruning w/ Andrea Kawabata of UH-CTAHR
    Management Tools for Kona Coffee Root-knot Nematode w/ Roxana Myers of USDA ARS DKI PBARC
    Field trials controlling the coffee leaf rust infection by using fungicides in commercial coffee farms in Hawai'i w/ Luis Aristizabal of SHAC
    Optimizing location-specific pesticide applications for Coffee Berry Borer on Hawaii Island w/ Melissa Johnson of USDA ARS DKI PBARC.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.