Ka`u News Briefs Monday, Oct. 20, 2014

Sunlight at dawn yesterday creates a backdrop of Hurricane Ana's clouds as birds fly in the skies near South Point.
Photo by Richard Taylor

HAWAI`I GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES shared their views with Big Island residents during a forum in Hilo earlier this month. Duke Aiona, Mufi Hannemann and Sen. David Ige told attendees why they are running for the state’s highest elected office.

Duke Aiona Photos from
Big Island Video News

      Republic Duke Aiona said, “The reason I’m running is I want to take you in a new direction. I don’t want you to have the same system. … It’s really about going in a new direction in regards to businesses, taxes and fees and everything else we face in this island state of ours.
      “But the real reason is I believe my calling is for my grandchildren and my children. I’m at that stage in life right now where I believe I have that one last season of life, and just this past couple of years my wife and I were blessed with a granddaughter Riley and a grandson. … For those of you who are brand-new grandparents, you understand my feeling and my emotion toward my grandchildren. In looking at them, and also looking at my children, you know it was upon me, upon a challenge from my wife. This is what I really wanted to do, which was to walk away from all this. Really, I had really thought about this and prayed about this, and if I would be able to look myself in the mirror and say I did everything I could to make things better for my grandchildren and my children.
      “And obviously the calling was simple. So, I’m here to give you an option taking you in a new direction so that you don’t have to just change out the players and have the same system in place.”

Mufi Hannemann

      Independent candidate Hannemann said, “I want you to think of yourself as an employer. You’re looking to hire the next leader for the state of Hawai`i, and when you do that, you look at their experience; you look at their qualifications; you look at their previous track record.
      “This is a job for someone who has executive experience. This is a big job – 52,000 employees, billions of dollars in an operating budget. You have to be clear that that person can hit the ground running from day one. 

      “It’s also a job that requires a governor to go to Washington, D.C. We’ve lost our perennial powerhouse back there in Sen. Daniel Inouye, and so now more than ever, with a very young delegation, that governor has to go there and ask for federal assistance. I have a proven track record of doing work in Washington, D.C., having worked with our delegation to save Pearl Harbor Shipyard from closing.

      “It also has to be a governor that has an international breadth of experience in dealing in the Pacific Asian region. I was … talking to students at University of Hawai`i-Hilo. I told them our future is in the Pacific Asia Region and what better way than to have a governor who has traveled extensively in that part of the world, has relationships and can build upon those relationships to build a better place.”

Sen. David Ige

      Sen. David Ige said, “I have had the privilege of working with your representatives in the State Capitol for 29 years, three decades, and there have been so many projects that I am proud of to be associated with the Big Island. I still remember the first time I met with Larry Kimura and he just expressed his concern that we would be losing native speakers, that we are down to the last 50 native speakers, and when we lose the language, we lose the culture. I am so proud to have been a part of that groundbreaking up at UH-Hilo to open the Hawaiian College, committed to perpetuation of the Hawaiian language, because I understand that the language is the culture, and our host culture is so important to the state of Hawai`i. …
      “I am running for governor because this election really is about the future of Hawai`i. It’s about the future that you and I want to leave to our children and our children’s children. There are so many issues. As I traveled across the state, and I’ve listened and heard the concern from many of you that government has become disconnected with the people; that it is no longer serving. I’m running for governor because I believe and I’ve heard that you want a change in leadership style. You want a leader that can bring our communities together rather than divide them; a leader who can find common ground and, most importantly, find solutions that move our communities forward.”
      See more at bigislandvideonews.com.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Hurricane Ana churned the waters at South Point Saturday. Photo by Peter Anderson

WALK-IN VOTING FOR THE GENERAL ELECTION begins tomorrow at Pahala Community Center and continues weekdays through Friday, Oct. 31. Hours are 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Name These Waterfalls. Here are two of several waterfalls
that appeared on the slopes above Wood Valley during
Hurricane Ana. Photo by Julia Neal 

MANY KA`U RESIDENTS HAVE COMMENTED ON FACEBOOK that they have never seen so much water fall from the mountain slopes as they saw Saturday during Hurricane Iselle, when Ka`u got drenched with upwards of 7.5 inches of rain. The Ka`u Calendar continues to seek native Hawaiian names for waterfalls along Hwy 11 and in Wood Valley.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

DOWNED POWER LINES ALONG HWY 11 resulted in a loss of electricity this morning in Pahala, Punalu`u and Wood Valley, according to Hawai`i Electric Light Co. The outage occurred at 4:44 a.m., and power was restored at 8:15 a.m. A HELCO representative did not know what brought the lines down.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.  

RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES ARE VERY HIGHLY favored by Hawai`i residents, according to a report by the University of Hawai`i. A representative survey of 1,214 Hawai`i residents conducted to assess public attitudes about different technologies for generating electricity showed that 97 percent of the public support increased development of at least some forms of RE in the state.
      “This support for RE was motivated by concerns for environmental protection, sustainability, and energy independence and by frustration with local energy prices,” the report states. Solar and wind power were the most widely accepted forms of RE (with 92 percent and 86 percent favorable opinion, respectively), followed by hydroelectric (76 percent) and geothermal power (75 percent). Municipal waste (58 percent) and biomass combustion (53 percent) were less widely endorsed but were still acceptable to the majority of residents. Only a small segment of the public endorsed conventional sources of energy generation — nuclear (22 percent), oil (13 percent) and coal (12 percent). There were modest differences in attitudes as a function of age, gender, and education, but no differences across counties.
      See http://uhfamily.hawaii.edu.

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KAMUELA FARMER ANNA PEACH presents The Pumpkin Primer, a program about her sustainable farming methods, at Ka`u public libraries this week. Programs are at Na`alehu Public Library tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. and Pahala Public & School Library Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
      See squashandawe.com.

TOMORROW’S AFTER DARK IN THE PARK program features Ka`u Learning Academy co-founder Joe Iacuzzo with a talk entitled Thomas Jefferson to Johnson Space Center: America’s Fossil History. 

      The free program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
      Park entrance fees apply. $2 donations support park programs.

KA`U CHAPTER OF HAWAI`I FARMERS UNION UNITED meets at Na`alehu Community Center Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Guest speaker Tane Datta, of Adaptations, Inc., discusses how to bring produce to market.
      The public is invited to all Ka`u Farmers Union United meetings. Farmers and backyard growers are invited to bring food to share.
      To join the Farmers Union, call 503-575-9098.

HO`OKUPU HULA NO KA`U CULTURAL FESTIVAL takes place in Pahala on the grounds of the Old Plantation Managers House this Friday and Saturday. All entertainment is open to the public with no fees. Friday and Saturday night will feature emcee Skylark and chanter Na`auao Vivas.
      On Saturday evening at 4 p.m. will be an opening pule performed by dancers who attend the morning hula workshop, along with an introduction of Kumu Hula. At 4:30 p.m. will be Hands of Time. At 5 p.m. will be Halau Hula O Kawaimaluhia with Kumu Hula Keoni Jennings. At 5:45 p.m. will be Hula Halau Kahoku Kauhiahionalani with Kumu Hula Sammy Fo. At 6 p.m. will be the Gomes `Ohana. At 6:30 p.m. a Kukui Ceremony; at 6:45 p.m. Keaiwa, featuring Demetrius Oliveira and Halau Hula O Leonalani, with Kumu Hula Debbie Ryder and Haumana from Japan, Okinawa, O`ahu and Pahala. At 7:30 p.m. will be Ka `Imia Na`auao Kahiko from Ka`u School of the Arts and Kumu Hula Marsha Bolosan. At 8 p.m. is Victor Chock & Friends, with the evening ending at 9 p.m. with Hawai`i Aloha.
      For more, see www.hookupukau.com.
      See more on the festival in this week’s Ka`u News Briefs and in this month’s issue of The Ka`u Calendar. 

VOLCANO ART CENTER’S ANNUAL MEETING, which was postponed due to Hurricane Ana, has been rescheduled for this Sunday, Oct. 26 at 3 p.m. at the Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village.
      There will be live entertainment while ballots are being counted, with current board member, vocalist Desiree Cruz, joined by Loren Wilken on keyboard for a set of Jazz music.
      For more information, call 967-8222.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2014.swf.

Ka`u News Briefs Sunday, Oct.19, 2014

Makai of Ka`alaiki Road, rain from Hurricane Ana created spectacular sites as streams fell over cliffs between Pahala and Na`alehu. John Cross, of Olson Trust, said the left fall is from an unnamed stream or drainage, while the one on the right is Hilea.
Photo by Julia Neal

KA`U SKIES ARE IMPROVING, WITH GLIMPSES OF SUNSHINE as Hurricane Ana continues on its northwest route south of the rest of the state. The tropical storm gained strength and became a category-one hurricane as it approached Hawai`i Island south of South Point Friday. While spared of strong winds due to the center of the storm being about 115 miles from South Point, Ka`u got pounded with rain for hours. The constant downpours flooded Hwy 11 in the Kawa area, filled streams – some to overflowing – and created waterfalls in the mountains above Hwy 11 and in Wood Valley.

Water in Ninole River cascaded below Aikane
Plantation. Photo by Julia Neal

      Wood Valley residents were cut off when water covered the road at the Kapapala Ranch intersection. A tree branch on Center Road fell across electric lines, taking out power to some homes in the valley.
      Aikane Plantation Coffee Farm on Ka`alaiki Road reported 5.5 inches of rain. “Thank God for no wind,” said owner Merle Becker. “Trees are heavy with cherries and a little bent over from all the rain, but we got through it.”
      On Friday night a rain gauge at Kapapala Ranch showed rain falling at two to three inches per hour as bands or precipitation from the storm reached the slopes of Mauna Loa, with heaviest amounts from Volcano to Pahala and Wood Valley. National Weather Service reported that Kapapala recorded 7.5 inches in a 24-hour period.
      Ka`u News Briefs will be posting photos of the waterfalls and asking residents if they know the traditional Hawaiian names of them.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

MOST OF HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK opened today following Hurricane Ana, except for Mauna Loa Road, which remains closed due to downed trees.
      Popular park features like Thurston Lava Tube, Kilauea Iki Overlook and the 19-mile stretch of Chain of Craters Road are now open, including both visitor centers and Kipukapuaulu (Bird Park). Namakanipaio Campground is also open.
      Volcano Art Center, Volcano House, Kilauea Military Camp, and the post office are open.
       Park rangers observed no significant damage from Hurricane Ana, but heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning impacted the park and Hawai‘i Island Friday and Saturday, causing hazardous conditions. More rain is forecast for East Hawai`i through Sunday, and a flash flood advisory is in effect as of Sunday morning. Motorists are urged to drive with caution.
      The Kahuku Unit remains closed this weekend and will be assessed on Monday.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

KA`U’S U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD is calling for the immediate suspension of visas for citizens of Ebola-stricken West African nations as well as flights from those countries into the US.

A tree limb fell on power lines in Wood Valley, cutting off power to
several homes. Photo by Julia Neal

      “Recent mistakes have revealed that the U.S. public health system is clearly not fully prepared to combat Ebola and prevent its spread in the United States,” Gabbard said. “We cannot stand idly by while this heart-breaking epidemic rages in West Africa, already claiming thousands of lives. There are immediate steps we must take to ensure the safety of the American people and ensure we can maintain our support for West African nations that are overwhelmed by this crisis. First, we need to immediately suspend commercial flights from the West African nations into the United States, as well as suspend visas for their passport holders, until we can ensure that our health facilities are adequately prepared. This temporary suspension will give our healthcare leaders the time and space to adequately prepare our health system to handle Ebola cases and help us to stay focused on the prevention efforts in West Africa.”

      Gabbard also voiced concerns about the Centers for Disease Control’s handling of the few cases that have already struck in the U.S., saying, “The CDC and some healthcare providers have already mishandled several Ebola cases. We cannot afford more mistakes. We should be taking every precaution to protect our people, beginning with our healthcare workers.

      
“Just look at the domino effect that just one sick person from West Africa has had. We’re still scrambling to deal with that episode. Just imagine the chaos that will occur if even more such sick individuals enter the country.

      “Ultimately, we need to be able to focus on our efforts to contain the spread of Ebola in West Africa. I strongly support the steps we’ve already taken to provide assistance overseas, but if we are increasingly distracted by Ebola cases in the U.S., we cannot fully focus on the heart of where this epidemic has struck. The impact and spread of Ebola thus far is absolutely devastating; we need to take every proactive measure we have available to stop this virus in its tracks.

      “Claims that we need to keep commercial flights open for healthcare workers and supplies to be ferried into these countries are absurd. During this period, essential personnel and equipment can be transported in and out of these countries via charter flights,” Gabbard added.

While the lava flow front in Puna, shown within yellow lines at left, is not advancing
toward Pahoa, a thermal image at right shows it is still active. Images from HVO

SCIENTISTS AT HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY report that glow from the June 27th lava flow in Puna was visible overnight via webcam, indicating that the flow remains active near its front and mid-way along its length, although it has not adanced. 

      A Civil Defense overflight yesterday morning found no significant flow advancement, and the distal tip of the flow was still about 0.8 miles from Apa`a Street and Cemetery Road near Pahoa, as measured along the steepest-descent line that the flow has been following.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Anna Peach presents programs on sustainable farming
in Ka`u this week. Photo from Anna Peach

KAMUELA FARMER ANNA PEACH of Squash and Awe farm presents talks about her sustainable farming methods at Ka`u public libraries this week. A seventh-generation farmer, Peach shares information about no-till farming, interplanting with native plants, seed saving and making natural fertilizers from restaurant scrap. 

      See her farm at squashandawe.com.
      Programs are at Na`alehu Public Library Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. and Pahala Public & School Library Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

KA`U LEARNING ACADEMY CO-FOUNDER Joe Iacuzzo, the official Hawai`i representative for the National Park Service’s National Fossil Day, presents a talk titled Thomas Jefferson to Johnson Space Center: America’s Fossil History at After Dark in the Park Tuesday.
      The free program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
      Park entrance fees apply. $2 donations support park programs.

KA`U CHAPTER OF HAWAI`I FARMERS UNION UNITED meets at Na`alehu Community Center Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
       Guest speaker at the meeting is Tane Datta, of Adaptations, Inc., who will discuss how to bring produce to market. Datta runs a farm in South Kona that distributes produce through a Community Supported Agriculture model. The 8.5-acre farm features an acre in coffee, three acres in intensive production and the rest in orchards. The farm is certified organic and is featured on the University of Hawai`i’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources website.
      The public is invited to all Ka`u Farmers Union United meetings. Farmers and backyard growers are invited to bring food to share.
      To join the Farmers Union, call 503-575-9098.

HO`OKUPU HULA NO KA`U CULTURAL FESTIVAL takes place in Pahala on the grounds of the Old Plantation Manager’s House this Friday and Saturday. All entertainment is open to the public with no fees. Friday and Saturday night will feature emcee Skylark and chanter Na`auao Vivas.
      The festival begins on Friday with `Ohana Night and an Opening Pule at 4 p.m., followed by Ho`okupu by Kumu Hula Haumana and others wishing to participate. At 4:30 p.m., Ernest Kalani takes the stage, followed by Keoki Kahumoku at 5 p.m. A Kukui Ceremony honoring ancestors will be held at 5:45 p.m., followed by music from the South Side Serenaders at 6 p.m. Music by Makanau begins at 7 p.m., followed by Steven Sioloa, Wailau Ryder and Ricky Masaoka at 8:15 p.m.
      See more on the festival in more of this week’s Ka`u News Briefs.

KAUAHA`AO CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH IS PLANNING its annual fundraising bazaar on Saturday, Nov. 15 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
      Members invite individuals and groups to be vendors. The flea market is open to any club, school, athletic organizations or individuals who would like to raise money for the upcoming holidays.
      The charge for a 10-foot x10-foot booth space is $10. Vendors are asked to bring their own tent, table, chairs and, if they need power, their own generator.
      For more information and to reserve a booth, call Walter Wong Yuen in the evenings at 928-8039.
      At the bazaar there will be live entertainment throughout the day. The Church will be selling laulau, kulolo, baked goods, laulau plate lunches, hotdogs and more.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2014.swf.

Ka`u News Briefs Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014

New county bridge in Wood Valley handled the raging stream and flood waters coming down Wood Valley Road. Photo by Julia Neal

KA`U ESCAPED THE WIND BUT NOT THE WATER. Heavy rains from Hurricane Ana flooded Wood Valley Road this morning, stranding residents and carving new paths through farms, coffee plantations and macadamia orchards. Monster waterfalls tumbled out of the mountains above Punalu`u, Kawa and Honu`apo as Ana passed southwest of the island.

Residents ride their boogie boards along Wood Valley Road. Photo by Julia Neal

      When Hilea bridge flooded on Hwy 11 between Honu`apo and Punalu`u around 4 a.m., Jay Casuga, on his way to work at Malama Market in Ocean View from his home in Pahala, was stranded for two hours between Hilea Bridge and Kawa along with a police officer and a Hele-On bus and driver.
      Unable to reach work, Casuga, an assistant meat department manager, his fiancée Elise Peralta, who is meat department manager at Malama, her little brother Rylan Peralta and co-worker Kimo Tyson fetched their boogie boards and rode the flood waters along Wood Valley Road.
      Up Wood Valley Road, the new county bridge built after Tropical Storm Iselle damaged the old one handled the rushing stream and a deluge of flood water from Wood Valley Road.
      The Kawa Flats area was still closed mid-morning to traffic on Hwy 11, and Wood Valley Road was closed at the flooded gulch near Kapapala intersection. Punalu`u and Honu`apo Beach Parks remained closed.
      Coffee farmers, some of them picking as much cherry as they could before the arrival of Ana, said they were happy to be spared from the kind of wind that ripped beans off the branches during Tropical Storm Iselle in August. Gloria Camba, president of the Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative, said ripe cherries need to picked quickly and that she hopes the rain will let up so farmers and pickers can get back to their orchards.

      A flash flood warning has been extended to 3 p.m. today. National Weather Service reminds residents to avoid flood-prone areas.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK REOPENED parts of Crater Rim Drive along Kilauea Caldera today at noon, including Kilauea Visitor Center and Jaggar Museum.
      Thurston Lava Tube, Kilauea Iki Overlook and all of Chain of Craters Road remain closed due to flooding. Mauna Loa Road above Kipukapuaulu (Bird Park) is closed, but Kipukapuaulu is open. Namakanipaio Campground is open. Park rangers on Sunday will reopen closed areas incrementally as hurricane impact is assessed.
      The Kahuku Unit remains closed this weekend, and International Archaeology Day, originally scheduled for today, will be rescheduled at a later date.
      Volcano Art Center, Volcano House, Kilauea Military Camp and the post office are open.
      The park reports no significant damage from Hurricane Ana, but heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning pelted the area Friday and early Saturday morning. More heavy rain is forecast through today, and the flash flood warning is in effect for the park. Motorists are urged to drive with caution.

       To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Flood waters traveled through coffee farms, cutting new paths along Wood Valley
Road. The flood isolated Wood Valley. Photo by Julia Neal

KA`U’S STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN, M.D., Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, has scheduled an informational briefing at the State Capitol for Wednesday at 9 a.m. on Hawai`i’s preparedness for outbreaks of infectious disease, including the Ebola virus. 

      “Ebola kills more than half the people it infects,” Green said, “so this is a matter of life and death, not only for the person who is infected but for everyone who comes into close contact with them.”
      Green announced he will convene representatives from the state Department of Health, the Healthcare Association of Hawai`i, the Department of Transportation and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to brief the Senate Committee on Health on current procedures, facilities and plans to identify and control cases of Ebola infection should it reach Hawai`i.
      “We have to make sure that Hawai`i is ready if someone infected with Ebola steps off a plane here,” Green said. “That means having effective screening measures in place at our airports and being prepared with facilities and procedures that can safely transport, quarantine and care for Ebola patients until they recover.”
      Green stressed the need for special safety procedures: “It is essential that we have emergency protocols ready and in place that will protect the nurses, orderlies and other health workers who would be in close contact with potential Ebola patients. This disease is spread by contact with body fluids from an infected individual, and it can only be effectively contained if the right equipment and procedures are used with extreme care.”
      “State government, hospital administrators and the entire health care system must communicate, work together and be prepared so we are ready to safely handle patients infected with Ebola or other dangerous contagious diseases,” Green said. “It is extremely unlikely that someone infected with Ebola will reach Hawai`i, given our distance from West Africa and our geographical isolation, but we must be prepared as if it is certain that we will have to screen, identify, quarantine and care for Ebola patients who could arrive here. Ebola is too deadly and dangerous to ignore.”

Monster waterfalls appeared in the mountains
makai of Makanau. Photo by Julia Neal

      Green is an Emergency Room doctor with 15 years of hospital experience on Big Island.
      For more information, contact Green at 808-937-0991 or sengreen@capitol.hawaii.gov.

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HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL HAS UNANIMOUSLY passed a resolution seeking state Legislature’s approval of coffee-labeling requirements.
      Ka`u’s Council member Brenda Ford introduced the resolution asking the state Legislature to pass a law requiring that labels on packages of Hawai`i coffee blended with foreign coffee include prominent identification stating the country or region of origin of the non-Hawai`i portion, along with percentages.
      The resolution also calls for requiring a minimum of 51 percent Hawai`i-grown coffee in any coffee package labeled as a blend.
      Hawai`i Tribune-Herald reported Ford saying, “Other states, other countries protect their farmers by saying if you’re going to blend, then you’ve got to disclose. But not in Hawai`i. Every other agricultural crop in Hawai`i is protected in that manner, except for Hawai`i-grown coffee.”
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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SANJEEV “SONNY” BHAGOWALIA, HAWAI`I’S Chief Advisor on Technology and Cybersecurity, has been named as deputy assistant secretary and chief information officer for the U.S. Department of Treasury, beginning Oct, 20.
      “Over the past three years, Sonny has helped Hawai`i leapfrog from the back of the pack in technology and cybersecurity to the front of the line, and we are now one of best in the country,” said Gov. Neil Abercrombie. “Under Sonny’s leadership, our government transformation program has garnered an unprecedented 25 national awards, including last week’s announcement of his 2014 Enterprise Architecture Hall of Fame Award for Individual Leadership in EA Practice, Promotion and Professionalization.
      “We have the right plans and have completed many projects, thanks to his invaluable leadership and the cooperation of the extended technology and cybersecurity `ohana. Because of him, we are now on the right track, charting and navigating the course to success for the future of Hawai`i and its citizens.”

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Hwy 11 at Punalu`u was closed this morning due to flooding at Hilea Bridge and Kawa.
A Hele-On bus, police officer and a Pahala man going to work in Ocean View were
stranded between Hilea Bridge and Kawa for two hours, beginning around 4 a.m.
Photo by Julia Neal

FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY has denied an appeal submitted in response to President Barack Obama’s decision not to declare a major disaster following Tropical Storm Iselle. Declaration of a major disaster would have made funds available for emergency low-interest loans to help owners rebuild and repair homes and property. 

      “After a thorough review of all the information contained in the initial request and your appeal, we reaffirm our original findings that the impact to individuals and households from this event is not of the severity and magnitude as to be beyond the combined capabilities of the state, affected local governments and voluntary agencies,” wrote FEMA representative Elizabeth A. Zimmerman in denying the application.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

BIIF GIRLS VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT schedule has Ka`u High playing at Pahoa at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The winner will play Konawaena Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at Onizuka Gym in Kealakekua. The finals take place Saturday at 4 p.m. at Kealakekua. 

THE PUMPKIN PRIMER COMES TO KA`U public libraries. The program shows how to use heirloom squash to outsmart melon fly and pickle worm in Hawai`i. Kamuela farmer Anna Peach of Squash and Awe farm presents a talk about her sustainable farming methods. A seventh-generation farmer, Peach decided to look to history for a solution to Hawai`i’s commercial crop failure. She shares information about no-till farming, interplanting with native plants, seed saving and making natural fertilizers from restaurant scrap.
      See her farm at squashandawe.com.
      Programs are in Na`alehu Public Library Tuesday, Oct. 21 at 2:30 p.m. and in Pahala Public & School Library Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 10:30 a.m.

Ka`u resident Joe Iacuzzo, here with a Tyrannosaurus rex fossil, presents a talk
at After Dark in the Park Tuesday. Photo from Joe Iacuzzo

KA`U LEARNING ACADEMY CO-FOUNDER Joe Iacuzzo, the official Hawai`i representative for the National Park Service’s National Fossil Day, will present a talk titled Thomas Jefferson to Johnson Space Center: America’s Fossil History at After Dark in the Park Tuesday.
      In 2008, Iacuzzo was the project manager for a team of scientists who worked at NASA to study the most complete dinosaur fossil ever discovered. The advances in science that allowed for the NASA research were set in motion by a host of early American scientists, including Jefferson, who was an avid fossil collector who was trying to understand the prehistoric past of the new United States. “The evolution of how we understand prehistoric life and the technologies available to researchers would make Jefferson's head spin!” Iacuzzo said.
      Iacuzzo worked for six years on Jurassic Park at Universal Pictures and co-produced an award-winning dinosaur documentary film for Discovery Channel.
      This event is sponsored by the National Park Services.
      The free program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
      Park entrance fees apply. $2 donations support park programs.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2014.swf.