Maui News

A rockfall from the southeast wall of the crater initiated the explosion, sending “large clots of molten splatter up to two meters across” in the vicinity of the closed visitor overlook fence.

Maui Police have since confirmed the identity of the victim as Margaret C. Cruse, 65, of Kīhei, Maui. Police say despite lifesaving efforts, Cruse sustained fatal injuries consistent with a shark attack. The official cause of death is pending an autopsy report.

Maui police responded to 17 burglaries, 24 vehicle break-ins and 10 vehicle thefts in Maui County over the seven-day period between Sunday, April 19, and Saturday, April 25, 2015.

A lockdown was initiated at the Maui Community Correctional Center in Wailuku following an inmate disturbance during breakfast this morning, public safety officials said.

There are no advisories issued after a 3.0 (preliminary magnitude) earthquake SW of Volcano on Big Island of Hawaiʻi reported at 7:35 a.m. HST on Wednesday, April 29, 2015.

An estimated 250 people showed up for a public meeting last night in which board members of the Maui Regional System of the Hawaiʻi Health Systems Corporation discussed potential job and service cuts to deal with a projected $28 million budget gap.

State and House conferees approved of a bill on Tuesday that paves the way for the establishment of a public-private partnership for hospitals on Maui.

The Hawaiʻi State Senate today voted on Senate Bill 550, a measure that prohibits the consumption, purchase, possession, and sale and distribution of “powdered alcohol,” marketed by one company as “Palcohol.”

The sign waving rally ahead of the briefing is expected to start at 4 p.m. at the corner of the Honoapiʻilani Highway and Kehalani Highway.

Budget and Finance Committee Chair Riki Hokama released his version of the proposed Fiscal Year 2016 budget yesterday, cutting $96 million in borrowing and $22 million in operating costs from the Mayor’s proposed $699.9 million budget.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is seeking responses to an anonymous five-question survey to provide its Board of Trustees helpful information for the Board’s upcoming meeting this Thursday, April 30, on the planned Mauna Kea thirty-meter telescope or TMT.

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is reporting an uptick in visitors to the Kīlauea Volcano and are attributing the influx to a steady rise in the lava lake at the summit.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration begins a series of public meetings this week to educate the public and solicit comment on a proposal to expand the size and focus of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary to include multiple marine species.

The upcoming program runs from June 10 to July 22, 2015, and is aimed at helping teachers expand youth awareness of national parks and incorporate new skills and park themes into classroom curriculum.

Maui’s Shannon Cabanilla of Lihikai Elementary School on Maui was honored with the state Department of Education’s 2015 Outstanding Vice Principal Award during a recognition event held over the weekend.

The park was closed yesterday for public safety, due to heavy rain that caused the level of ʻĪao Stream to be very high.

The project includes reconstruction of Wailea Alanui from Okolani Drive to Wailea Ike Drive, and Wailea Ike Drive from Wailea Alanui to the Piʻilani Highway.

Department officials say it’s the seventh boat reported since February this year, following six others that arrived on shores across Hawaiʻi.

A group of youth volunteers spent recent weeks planting thousands of native trees on the leeward slopes of Haleakalā as part of an effort aimed at restoring dryland habitat for endangered native plant and bird species including the Kiwikiu bird, which numbered only 500 at last report.

On its third day, the Maui Fire Department is continuing its search for a Molokaʻi fisherman missing since Thursday morning off the northwest coast of Lānaʻi.