About The Kaʻū Calendar

Monday, August 15, 2016

Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Monday, Aug. 15. 2016

Department of Hawaiian Home Lands shares its resource management plans for South Point tomorrow.
See more below. Photo by Peter Anderson
WITH THE EXCEPTION of one race at one precinct, the majority of South Hawai`i residents who voted in the 2016 primary election chose their state and federal incumbents. Results released after Election Day on Saturday showed Hawai`i County Council member Greggor Ilagan receiving 68.7 percent of votes in the precinct with Ka`u High School as its polling place. Ilagan challenged incumbent Sen. Russell Ruderman for the District II seat. Ruderman, who garnered 21 percent at Ka`u High, won the Democratic primary with a total vote of 51.9 percent.
State Sen. Russell Ruderman overcame his opponent
in the Democratic primary. Photo by Ron Johnson
      Ruderman took the precinct at Cooper Center with 56.4 percent. At 24.8 percent, Ilagan received less than half of Ruderman’s total, and Libertarian Fred Fogel pulled in 0.82 percent.
      In state Representative District III, Rep. Richard Onishi took 40.5 percent at Cooper Center and 58.7 percent at Ka`u High. Democratic Challenger Ainoa Naniole garnered 33.7 percent at Cooper Center and 29 percent at Ka`u High. Onishi won his district with 60.6 percent overall.
      In state Representative District V, Democrat Rep. Richard Creagan, who ran unchallenged in his party, received 63.5 percent at Na`alehu School, 53 percent at Ocean View Community Center and 62.3 percent at Miloli`i Halau. Michael Last, his Libertarian challenger, receive less that two percent at these precincts. Districtwide, Creagan garnered 2,804 votes, or 71.2 percent. Last received 33 votes, or 84.6 of the Libertarian total.
      U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz’s percentages ranged from 57.5 at Ocean View Community Center to 79 at Ka`u High. He handily beat four Democratic challengers. Republican John Carroll’s highest tally in South Hawai`i was 11.3 percent at Ocean View Community Center. Statewide, Schatz received 80 percent of Democratic votes, and Carroll pulled in 59 percent of Republican votes.
      U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard similarly had much better results than her challengers. In South Hawai`i precincts, she took between 62.6 percent at Ocean View Community Center and 79 percent at Ka`u High School. Challengers, including Democrat Shay Chan Hodges all received 10 percent or less. Gabbard racked up 79.5 percent of state Democratic votes, and Republican Angela Kaaihue received 36.9 percent.
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Activities at Cooper Center will be on holiday while the county
reroofs the main building. Photo from Cooper Center
COOPER CENTER IS GETTING A NEW ROOF.
      The popular community center in Volcano Village will be closed for all classes, meetings, bookstore and thrift store patrons from Monday, Aug. 29 through Friday, Sept. 2 for work by the county. There will also be no access to the playground.
      Skateboard ramps will be open with access through the exit driveway for the duration. Regular hours are expected to resume on Saturday, Sept. 3.
      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

KILAUEA’S RECENT SUMMIT lava lake explosion is a reminder of significant, ongoing hazards around Halema`uma`u Crater. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists discuss these in the current issue of Volcano Watch.
      “At 10:02 p.m., HST, on Saturday, Aug. 6, a section of altered, thermally stressed rock enclosing the Halema`uma`u Crater lava lake detached from the vent wall and plummeted into the molten lava,” the article states. “Tons of rocky debris impacting the lake surface triggered a violent explosion of volcanic gas, incandescent spatter (blobs of molten lava), and pieces of solid rock that sent a jet of glowing debris skyward.
      “Within seconds, tephra (airborne volcanic rock fragments) began falling to the ground, blanketing the rim of Halema`uma`u Crater – about 120 meters (400 feet) above the lava lake surface – with a continuous layer of spatter and dense rock fragments that covered an area of about 50 m by 80 m (165 ft by 260 ft). In places, this tephra layer was up to 20 centimeters (eight inches) thick. Almost certainly, anyone who had been near the crater rim in this area would have been killed or severely injured.
      “Trade winds influenced the trajectory of the fallout. So, while most of the tephra fell just east of the vent, pebble-sized debris also pelted the Halema`uma`u Crater parking lot, about 500 m (0.3 miles) to the southwest.
      “As testimony to the heat and violence of the event, images captured two days later (posted at http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/multimedia/index.php) show the blanket of spatter and solid rock fragments, with individual pieces up to 70 cm (28 in) across, on the crater rim.
An explosion triggered by a rockfall in Kīlauea Volcano's summit lava lake
on August 6 blanketed the rim of Halemaʻumaʻu Crater with a layer
of tephra up to about eight inches thick. Photo from USGS/HVO
      “Spatter that landed on a plastic case housing batteries and electrical components for a gravity monitoring instrument about 35 m (115 ft) from the rim of Halema`uma`u melted the case and ignited a fire that incinerated its contents. The gravimeter itself survived, but is being systematically assessed for possible unseen damage. Other nearby HVO monitoring instruments remain operational.
      “Saturday night’s event was recorded by HVO web cameras, and HVO seismometers around Halema`uma`u Crater detected a distinctive long-period signal related to sloshing of the lava lake set in motion by the rockfall. Following the 10:02 p.m. event, the lava lake surface remained agitated for a few hours, something also observed following past rockfall-triggered lava lake explosions.
      “Late-night visitors at the Jaggar Museum Overlook in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park likely witnessed a dramatic and rapidly ascending bright orange glow as the explosion cloud rose above the summit vent rim. They might have also heard a low rumble followed by a loud boom as the vent wall gave way and impacted the lava lake. Diners at Volcano House Hotel, 3.5 kilometers (2.1 mi) across the caldera, reported seeing an especially bright glow above the east margin of the lava lake. The distant glow was also noted by residents of nearby subdivisions.
      “In the aftermath of the event, HVO scientists and University of Hawai`i colleagues carefully mapped and sampled the debris field before rain and wind could take a toll on the deposit. Analyses of the tephra may provide insight into how these lava lake explosions happen and what conditions favor their occurrence – information that could enable HVO to quantify the probability of future events and the likely range of dangerous impacts.
      “Rockfalls and the resulting lava lake interactions that produce a severe hazard are challenging, if not impossible, events to forecast. To date, HVO scientists have seen no evidence of precursory signals before an explosion, and the magnitude of the event likely depends on the location and size of the rockfall, the lava lake level at the time of the rockfall, wind velocity, and other dynamic factors.
      “Most rockfalls from the vent wall have occurred during rising lava lake levels, when large areas of the wall rock are heated and develop internal cracks due to expansion. But some rockfalls, like the Aug. 6 event, occur after the lake level drops, possibly when the buttressing effect of the lake is lost, facilitating wall failure. These ideas are part of ongoing research examining the evolution of the summit vent since it opened in March 2008.
      “What is certain is that Saturday night’s explosive event reinforces our awareness of inherent dangers in the vicinity of an active lava lake in a deep crater. Residents and visitors alike are reminded to heed National Park Service and USGS advisories regarding volcanic activity and ongoing hazards.”
      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov.
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DHHL plans call for managing natural and cultural
resources at South Point. Photo from DHHL
LEARN ABOUT SOUTH POINT Resource Management Plan tomorrow. Department Of Hawaiian Home Lands holds a public meeting from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Elementary School Cafeteria.
      The plan is available at https://dhhl.hawaii.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/South-Point-Public-Review-Draft-Plan-to-DHHL_052616.pdf.
      For more information, contact DHHL Planner Andrew Choy at Andrew.H.Choy@hawaii.gov or 808-620-9279.

JADELYN MONIZ-NAKAMURA discusses the development of Hawai`i National Park tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
      $2 donations support park programs. Park entrance fees apply.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS ATPAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM ANDKAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

Click on document to enlarge.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_August_2016.pdf.
See kaucalendar.com/TheDirectory2016.html
and kaucalendar.com/TheDirectory2016.pdf.