|
Newswatch
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
|
Students raise $6,000 to give to Katrina fund
Students and staff of Saint Francis School in Manoa have raised $6,000 for victims of Hurricane Katrina.
The funds were donated to Catholic Charities of Hawaii and the American Red Cross to support their rescue efforts.
The fund-raising challenge for the girls school, comprised of grades six through 12, was initiated by the senior class.
"All of the students and staff have worked hard to support a cause that really touches all of our hearts," said Sister Joan of Arc Souza, school principal. "In the wake of this tragedy, we hope that our efforts can bring some normalcy to those affected by Hurricane Katrina."
Satellite city halls to get longer hours
Satellite city halls at Ala Moana, Pearlridge and Windward Mall will stay open later one day a week beginning Wednesday.
The new hours will be from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Wednesdays. Currently, the mall sites close at 5 p.m.
The extended hours are part of a pilot project that will run through June 30 to gauge whether there is a demand for nighttime service.
"I just have a feeling that demand will warrant it. That's why we want to urge the public to take advantage of this," said Mayor Mufi Hannemann, who proposed the longer hours while on the campaign trail last year.
The service is expected to cost the city an additional $53,000 for the remaining seven months of the fiscal year, primarily for staffing costs.
Hannemann said the extended hours are also part of an effort to try to reduce the long lines at satellite city halls.
"We really think it's worth the expenditure so we can reduce the stress and the long lines of the people," Hannemann said.
Kalakaua's items to be exhibited in his honor
Personal mementos of King David Kalakaua will be on display beginning next week in the reception area of the mayor's office at Honolulu Hale, city officials have announced.
The display of historical treasures, which will run for seven weeks, will feature items loaned to the city by the Free and Accepted Masons of Hawaii and the Lodge Le Progress de l'Oceanie. Chartered in 1843, the Masonic lodge was the first west of the Rocky Mountains.
Kalakaua was a Mason, and documents related to his 1876 term as master of the lodge will be on display, along with a medal worn by the king while he was the master, the officials said.
Visitors to the mayor's office will also be able to see silver tools Kalakaua commissioned for laying the cornerstone of Iolani Palace in 1879, they said.
The Masons offered to let the city display the items to commemorate the anniversary of Kalakaua's birth on Nov. 16, 1836.
Mayor Mufi Hannemann and members of the lodge will mark the occasion Wednesday with a 9 a.m. ceremony at King Kalakaua Park, at Kalakaua and Kuhio avenues, in Waikiki.
Company cited and fined over air quality
The state has cited Resource Recovery Ltd., a company that operates a stone processing plant at temporary sites across the state, for violations of its air quality permit.
The state Department of Health Clean Air Branch has cited the company for not performing various required tests of air quality in connection with the use of a rock crusher and a diesel engine generator and for failure to submit monitoring reports.
The company, which has 20 days to contest the state order, was fined $19,600 and was told to correct the problem.
Company officials could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staff
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Police seek man who robbed Kauai gas station, hurt cashier
LIHUE » A man who robbed a Chevron gas station on Wednesday night injured the cashier and left with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Police said the robbery happened at a station across from Kauai County offices.
Police did not give a description of the man, who knocked the cashier down at around 9 p.m. before taking off on foot.
But police Lt. Roy Asher said detectives "had a person of interest" they were looking for yesterday.
The Chevron employee at the Rice Street station was extremely shaken by the incident, Asher said, but she was able to call 911.
The attendant was treated by fire personnel and emergency medical technicians and released at the scene, officials said.
Police are asking for the public's help.
Anyone with information about the robbery is urged to contact Detective Robert Castro at 241-1689 or CrimeStoppers at 241-1887.