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Josh Tatofi was the fan favorite walking away Favorite Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Island Music Album of the Year, and Hawaiian Single of the Year.

All across Maui, hotels, vacation properties, car rental companies, restaurants, retail shops and other businesses that cater to the island’s 3 million or so annual travelers are preparing for the return of non-quarantining tourists, beginning Oct. 15. So what to expect? No one can say with any authority what numbers of visitors will travel to Maui through the end of the year. But most agree: The recovery is going to start out slowly.

Hawaiian Electric recently presented a donation of two 2012 Nissan Leaf electric vehicles to the University of Hawai‘i Maui College’s Native Hawaiian Career and Technical Educational Program to provide mechanics hands-on experience in maintaining and repairing EVs.

Two days before Hawai‘i is scheduled to relaunch tourism with a pre-travel testing program, Hawai‘i airline executives will share “Impacts and Forecast of the Airline Industry” as part of a webinar series presented by the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business Alumni Association and Travel Industry Management International.

Hawaiian Airlines today announced it will temporarily suspend ‘Ohana by Hawaiian passenger and cargo services effective Nov. 1. Hawaiian, which reduced its workforce by nearly 2,500 employees this month when the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Payroll Support Program expired, will suspend its ‘Ohana by Hawaiian passenger flights between Honolulu and Moloka‘i and Lāna‘i, as well as cargo-only service within the Hawaiian Islands. Service between HNL and Kapalua in West Maui was suspended in March.

A medical doctor and resident of Wailuku, Maui was charged by a criminal complaint unsealed on Thursday, with the alleged unlawful distribution of the controlled substance hydrocodone. 

Mahi Pono presents its first annual Fall Harvest on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.  Organizers say this drive-through festival will provide the Maui community with a safe, ‘ohana-friendly way to celebrate Mahi Pono’s first fall harvest while recognizing the work of Imua Family Services.

There were 155 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today, including 109 on the island of O‘ahu, 45 on Hawai‘i Island and one case in a resident of Hawai‘i who was diagnosed out-of-state. Kaua‘i and Maui reported no new cases today.

The report notes that while home sales and new construction fell sharply during the onset of the pandemic, both have rebounded aggressively, fueled by a combination of low interest rates, increased demand and a growing preference for low-density housing.

It identifies the point at which Kaua‘i would opt out of the state’s pre-travel test plan and continue with the 14-day mandatory quarantine for incoming arrivals if metrics reflect too much risk.

Hamada Suisan Co. Ltd., the owner of the Japanese-flagged fishing vessel, M.V. Kyoshin Maru No. 20, plead guilty, pursuant to a plea agreement, to aiding and abetting the attempted export of shark fins out of Hawaiʻi in violation of the Lacey Act, the Department of Justice announced today. 

“We are opening most Places of Deposit on the same day ballot packages for Maui County voters are scheduled to be mailed out,” County Clerk Kaohu said. “This means in addition to mailing their ballots back to us, voters will also be able to drop off their ballots at our designated Places of Deposit as soon as they have completed their voting.”

The Makawao History Museum will not be re-opening its physical location at 3643 Baldwin Avenue according to an announcement issued today. 

Entremets, pronounced ‘ontra-may,’ are complex cakes – they involve difficult techniques, advanced knowledge of flavors and textures and the construction is nothing short of architectural.

There were 101 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today, including 86 on the island of O‘ahu, 14 on Hawai‘i Island and one case on Maui. Hawai‘i’s COVID-19 death toll increased to 164, with one new deaths reported since yesterday on O‘ahu.

Planned to be online in 2023, Paeahu Solar is capable of powering about 6,900 Maui homes per year. Over the lifetime of the project, it can replace the use of 1.3 million barrels of liquid fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 530,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Six mariners were rescued offshore of Lānaʻi when their 24-foot recreational vessel became disabled about 1.5 miles off of Mānele Harbor on Wednesday.

The Maui Police Department Special Response Team was contacted regarding the finding of a possible grenade at a residence in Makawao on Wednesday morning. Further investigation revealed the suspected grenade to be an incendiary device and not an explosive device.

“The State has made it clear that they want to move forward with the pre-travel testing program, without the second test,” Mayor Victorino said. “Many of our businesses and working families are struggling, so we are moving forward with the transpacific program.

Governor Ige hosts a media briefing today to discuss the upcoming pre-travel testing program for the state and other comprehensive safety measures ahead of the Oct. 15 launch.