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An international team of scientists, with the help of three observatories atop Maunakea on the Big Island, discovered the relatively close exoplanet dubbed Gliese 12 b in our galactic neighborhood.

With a June 4 deadline just a week away, there’s been a flurry of activity in the past three weeks by candidates seeking Maui County political offices, with several checking out and/or filing their official nomination papers.

The Maui Traffic Division conducted eight separate impaired driving checkpoints, and screened 1,768 vehicles, which resulted in 13 arrests for impaired driving, nine other arrests for various offenses, issued 23 citations, and towed six vehicles.

The Maui Police Department is asking for the public’s help with any information on the whereabouts of Gloria Brewer, 50, of Makawao. Brewer was reported missing on Tuesday, May 28, 2024, by a family member who has not seen her since the Fall of 2023 in the Makawao area.

COVID-19 activity is on the rise, according to a new Respiratory Disease Activity dashboard released by the Hawai‘i State Department of Health. 

Gov. Josh Green, M.D., highlighted the achievements of the 2024 legislative session to unlock more affordable housing across the state in a ceremony at the State Capitol. Green underscored the collaborative efforts behind several significant bills aimed at addressing the state’s housing crisis. 

The deadline is fast approaching for COFA citizens who were affected by the Aug. 8 wildfires on Maui to apply for FEMA disaster assistance. The 60-day application period ends Friday, May 31.

The Chamber of Commerce Hawaiʻi, in collaboration with nine other diverse, statewide business organizations, hosted the Inaugural Chamber Alliance Legislative Wrap-Up and Pau Hana event at the YWCA Honolulu on May 22, 2024. State lawmakers and business leaders discussed cost of living challenges, legislative session reflections and 2025 legislative priorities.

Registration opens Wednesday for the County of Maui, Department of Parks and Recreation, South District 9- and 10-year-old Youth Basketball League.

The Board of Land and Natural Resources has rejected a request from the owners of the luxury yacht Nakoa for a formal contested case hearing to fight a $1.8 million fine assessed last month.

Allen’s Plumbing will be performing work on the County’s water system, starting Thursday, May 30, 2024. The work will result in a water shutdown for a portion of Kīhei from approximately 9 p.m. Thursday, May 30 to 5 a.m. Friday, May 31, 2024.

The Institute of Hawaiian Music (IHM) at the University of Hawai‘i Maui College has just released a CD of new music written and recorded by a special cohort of students. Entitled Ha‘ina Ko Wehi: Celebrating West Maui in Mele, the project was supported with a grant from the North Beach-West Maui Benefit Fund and originally intended to create new music for West Maui. However, given the tragic wildfires of Aug. 8, 2023 – occurring just two weeks before the group was scheduled to begin its work – the project’s focus shifted and many students chose to write and sing about Lahaina, its rich history, and their hopes for its future.

Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen praised the work of Maui Economic Opportunity, citing the efforts that “make a difference in the lives so many” in proclaiming May as Community Action Month in Maui County.

Three Wailuku men were issued multiple citations within the ʻĀhihi-Kīnaʻu Natural Area Reserve on May 21, at approximately 9:30 p.m. Officers recovered a total of 78 different fish. The men are scheduled to appear in Maui District Court on June 27 at 9 a.m.

A 57-year-old man died as a result of a motor vehicle collision on Lono Ave., southeast of Kaʻahumanu Ave. in Kahului early Monday morning. Police say the man who died was known to frequent the area, and was lying in the roadway when an unknown vehicle drove over him at around 3:10 a.m. on May 27, 2024.

“I would just say we’re a very persistent and resilient class,” senior Lola Donez said Sunday. “We’ve literally been through it all I guess, and we’re still standing, we’re still here graduating. We still accomplished what every other high school student accomplishes when they graduate — we just kind of had to go through a lot more hardships.”

“Cultivating Care: Caring For Your Islands and Caring For Yourself” is the theme of this year’s fourth ‘Imi Pono: The Greatest Challenge contest for Maui County middle and high school students, with top entries winning cash prizes.

Hawaiʻi Attorney General Anne Lopez joined a coalition of 23 attorneys general defending a proposed rule issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act of 2022. 

Maui jewelry artist and arts teacher Julie Matheis, in partnership with Hale Mahaolu, has been awarded $8,000 from the the Hawai‘i Community Foundation as part of its new Museum Without Walls Arts Education Initiative.

Another $7.7 billion in student loan debt forgiveness for 160,500 people was announced by the Biden-Harris administration Wednesday, offering relief for millions of borrowers living with student debt.