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Police and Fire


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POSTED: Tuesday, October 27, 2009

6 homeless after fire does $575,000 damage

Fire destroyed the second floor of a house in Kihei, Maui, on Sunday, leaving six people without a home.

The Red Cross on Maui found temporary lodging for three nights at a local hotel for the six adults who were living in the house at Wainohia and Ahaiki streets.

Damage was estimated at $575,000.

The cause of the fire, which was reported at 4:05 p.m., is still under investigation, Maui fire officials said.

Victim identified in motorcycle crash

Maui police have identified a 21-year-old Kihei man who died Saturday at Maui Memorial Medical Center of injuries he suffered when the motorcycle he was driving rear-ended a sedan in Kahului.

Thomas J. Grad was traveling westbound on Mokulele Highway at 10:38 p.m. Wednesday when he hit a 2005 Honda Civic driven by a 62-year-old Kihei woman, police said.

The car went onto the grass median and overturned, while the motorcycle slid on the road, police said. Grad was wearing a helmet, according to police.

The driver of the car is being held for observation at the medical center.

Police said speed may have been a contributing factor in the crash.

Grad is the 18th traffic fatality in Maui County this year, compared with 16 at the same time last year.

Homeless man arrested for alleged cash snatch

Police arrested an 18-year-old homeless man who allegedly stole cash out of the hands of a 33-year-old man who had just made a withdrawal from an automated teller machine in Waikiki earlier this month.

Police said that at about 4:35 p.m. Oct. 20, the victim withdrew an undisclosed amount of cash from an ATM in Waikiki and was counting the cash when the younger man grabbed the money and fled.

On Sunday the victim saw the suspect in Waikiki and informed police.

Police arrested the man on suspicion of second-degree theft.