Hawai'i State News

National Weather Service in Honolulu extends red flag warning for leeward and interior areas of Big Island through 6 p.m. Aug. 3.

Siren Towers will undergo testing on Friday as part of the monthly evaluation of the Statewide Outdoor Warning Siren System, which covers all hazards.

Tsunami waves generated by distant earthquakes take hours to reach the Hawaiian Islands, giving people time to evacuate vulnerable areas. Local tsunami, however, do not need to travel far to reach our shores, leaving a much shorter time to respond.

Hawai‘i U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz launches guide to learn more about how major changes to health care, food assistance and other services, as well as education and taxes, will affect thousands of island residents because of the new fedeal tax law.

Shipping company’s operations at ports in Hilo, Kawaihae on Big Island and Nāwiliwili on Kaua‘i are open again; barges from Honolulu arrived at Kawaihae and Nāwiliwili on July 29, but not all cargo was discharged and none was loaded back from either port.

Aimed at helping communities recover from major disasters more quickly, the Reforming Disaster Recovery Act was introduced and written by Hawai‘i Democrat U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz and Maine Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins.

Hawai‘i County officials ask residents, however, to exercise caution and stay out of the water, as coastal areas continue to be hazardous.

100 Laysan finches, a native Hawaiian bird that once thrived at Midway Atoll on the far northern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, now a part of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, were released on Eastern Island last week as part of continuing efforts to re-establish and expand native bird populations to the national monument in preparation for potential catastrophic events.

One lucky winner will recieve a trip for 2 to the 15th anniversary festival on O’ahu at the end of October, including airfare for two on Hawaiian Airlines, a 4-night stay at OUTRIGGER Waikīkī Paradise Hotel, two priority access tickets to the Hawaiian Airlines Presents Decanted grand tasting and two tickets to Cirque Du Soleil ‘Auana at OUTRIGGER Waikīkī Beachcomber Hotel, a prize package worth a total $5,700.

Annual 3-month Operation Nasse — conducted by United States, Australia, France and New Zealand, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu — aimed at safeguarding marine resources of Pacific Island nations.

Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources says a contractor is scheduled to begin July 29 trimming and removing the massive tree that uprooted and toppled the afternoon of July 12, falling across Kilauea Avenue, a portion of nearby Calvary Chapel Hilo and — it was learned a week later — two women, apparently crushing them underneath. It’s been about 2 weeks since the tree collapsed and almost a week since the bodies of the two women were recovered from under its now tangled and mangled canopy.

The program — a joint effort between Hawai‘i and U.S. Department of Agriculture — is aimed at bridging a gap in nutrition many keiki throughout the islands experience during their summer break from school.

While the situation has improved statewide compared with before the 2024-25 school year, 4 of the 9 school bus routes throughout the state still suspended are on the Big Island. Fortunately, offiicials report new drivers are being trained.

Following a July 19 plea to the public seeking help finding 48-year-old Sarah Coultas of Pa‘auilo and daughter Violet Coultas, Hawai‘i Island police received credible information they were in the Phoenix area, prompting Arizona Department of Public Safety to issue first of state’s new missing persons alerts to find Violet.

Silicone elastomers are used in items such as artificial muscles and medical implants and need to bend, stretch, and move with the human body without deteriorating over time.

The Neighbor Island Medical Scholars Program aims to alleviate physician shortages in rural areas by giving high school students hands-on education and real clinical experience.

The July 19 temblor that caused the tsunami watch excitement struck roughly 45 miles northeast from the epicenter of a 1952 magnitude-9 earthquake that did trigger a destructive Pacific tsunami that caused damage in Hawai‘i, including on the Big Island.

Governor signs emergency proclamation, activates Hawai‘i National Guard to respond when needed to help, as wildfire threat expectd to increase heading into hottest months of summer, exacerbating already existing abnormally dry and drought conditions throughout much of the state, including most of the Big Island.

New study from researchers at University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology also provides hope that that impact could be manageable; meanwhile, five Indo-Pacific coral species received critical habitat protections this week, potentially preventing their mass extinction.

7 of the new officers assigned to Hawaiʻi Community Correctional Center, 1 to Kulani Correctional Facility, both in East Hawai’i, following 8 weeks of vigorous classroom instruction, physical training and field training.