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Kokua Line
June Watanabe
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Visiting infant will be required to use car seat
Question:
My daughter and 11-month-old grandson plan to visit me in Hawaii for two weeks. Are we required to buy a car seat while they visit us?
Answer: You're not required to buy a child passenger restraint seat, but your grandson is required to be secured in one while riding in a vehicle.
Most car rental companies do offer car seats, but that could be a costly option, notes Lisa Dau, a child passenger safety technician/instructor with Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children
She suggested your daughter either bring a child restraint seat with her or purchase one here.
Concerns about your grandson's safety while traveling actually would start with the airplane ride.
The Federal Aviation Administration "strongly urges parents and guardians to secure children in an appropriate restraint based on weight and size."
That would mean paying for a seat for the child, although many parents opt to carry children under age 2 on their lap.
The FAA says many airlines offer discounts of up to 50 percent for children under 2.
"Buying a ticket for your child is the only way to guarantee that you will be able to use a CRS (child restraint system)," according to the FAA.
See www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/crs/ for more information.
Your daughter should also check with the airline as to what its policies and suggestions are regarding this.
Meanwhile, Dau points out that Hawaii law requires children to be in "car seats" from birth to 7 years of age.
Haseko Project
The Sept. 7 Kokua Line (
https://archives.starbulletin.com/2008/09/07/news/kokualine.html) addressed the complaints of Kalaeloa residents about big trucks dumping boulders "day and night" near White Plains Beach.
The trucks were under contract to Haseko Home Inc. to deliver stones to the developer's Hoakalei Marina project. A spokeswoman said all state and city laws were being followed.
State Department of Health spokeswoman Janice Okubo said the state generally does not regulate the dumping of stones and clean fill materials. But an inspector was to check the site to make sure no laws were being broken.
Okubo subsequently told the Star-Bulletin that an inspector did speak with Haseko's project engineer, who said that Haseko was "importing boulders from China for the marina, and that they are not bringing in tree trunks to the site."
The tree trunks, which were the result of site clearing, were to be chipped and used as mulch as part of the landscaping for the golf course, she said.
"Thus, the site appears to be a construction site, not a solid-waste management facility," Okubo said.
Found GPS
A Kokua Line reader said he was on his morning walk on Monday when he found a handheld Garmin nuvi GPS device on the sidewalk. When turned on, it has a splash screen and photograph, then a keypad to enter the PIN.
The finder asks the owner to call the voice mail at 375-8268, leaving a description of the photo and a call-back number.
Got a question or complaint? Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered. E-mail to
kokualine@starbulletin.com.
See also: Useful phone numbers