Newswatch

By Star-Bulletin Staff

Wednesday, October 6, 1999

Millennium Moments

Pearl Harbor

BEFORE the December 1941 attack, before the big U.S. battleships, before the coal sheds, there were the oysters.

So many of them, in fact, that the ocean inlet came to be called Pearl Harbor.

Around the start of the 19th century, the discovery of pearls in those oysters spurred King Kamehameha to impose a ban on diving, according to Carl Myatt and Deborah Uchida in "Hawaii: the Electric Century."

A British vessel commanded by Capt. John Vancouver in 1793 was the first foreign ship to enter the harbor; in 1872, the United States started seeing the defensive attraction of Pearl Harbor.

At the time of Hawaii's 1898 annexation, Pearl Harbor housed the United States' only foreign coal depot, say Myatt and Uchida. Soon after, the coal sheds' capacity grew from 1,000 to 20,000 tons; within five years, capacity was at 200,000 tons to fuel the growing fleet of U.S. warships.

Council defers 'dangerous dog'
bill to address legal questions

A "dangerous dog" bill aimed at ensuring that owners take responsibility for their pets has been collared in a City Council committee.

Councilwoman Donna Mercado Kim, chairwoman of the Community and Customer Services Committee, called for deferral of the measure to address legal questions raised by city prosecutors.

While the existing bill calls for a District Court judge to determine whether a dog is dangerous, prosecutors said the proposed maximum penalty of a $2,000 fine and a year in jail may require a jury trial.

The bill got favorable testimony from the Hawaiian Humane Society and the Honolulu Police Department, among others.

Kailua resident Jim Wood said current laws pertaining to dog attacks "can pronounce the death penalty on a dog but the owner can only be found guilty of leash-law violations."

Council budget panel approves golf fee hike

Golfers will pay $2 more next year to play a round on the city's five municipal 18-hole golf courses under a proposal that moved out of the city council's budget committee today.

Currently, resident pay $10 on weekdays and $14 on weekends to play.

Alvin Au, the director of the city Department of Enterprise Services said golf fees bring in about $10-million a year, while operations and debt service amount to $17.3 million a year. City taxpayers, he said, have been subsidizing golf play by $7.3 million or 42-percent of annual costs.

The fee increase is expected to bring in about $1.5 million in additional revenue each year.

The council is also looking at increasing golf fees by $1 a year for each of the next four years.

A public hearing on the matter will be held by the council on Oct. 20.

The city council is also considering a proposal to create a new board to hear gripes about city golf courses.

Whether to raise golf fees and the handling of tee-time reservations have become key issues in recent years and need a board to address them, said Councilman Duke Bainum, who is co-introducing a resolution that urges Mayor Jeremy Harris to establish such a panel.

Bainum noted the city also is exploring the shutdown of certain operations, such as the Ted Makalena Golf Course.

Lava resumes flowing after a brief pause

HILO -- Lava is flowing again in Kilauea's east rift area after a brief pause that began Sunday night, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said.

Scientists use tremor -- the ground shaking caused by multiple tiny earthquakes -- to gauge whether an eruption is going on. The tremor near Puu Oo crater stopped between 10 p.m. Sunday and 9:45 a.m. yesterday, they said.

When tremor started again, it was still weak, but enough to be linked to a small flow from a lava pond outside Puu Oo. Inside Puu Oo, 190 feet below the rim, a lava lake was slowly bubbling in three places, the observatory said.

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Police, Fire, Courts



By Star-Bulletin staff

Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers

Big Isle youth, 16, sought in stabbing

HONOKAA, Hawaii -- Police are looking for a 16-year-old boy who allegedly stabbed a 15-year-old boy in the back in the parking lot of the Hale Hauoli apartment building about 1:30 p.m. yesterday.

The victim remained at North Hawaii Community Hospital in stable condition this morning, the hospital said.

The attack followed an argument between the two youths, police said. After the stabbing, the attacker fled with another youth, they said.

Driver hurt in collision in critical condition

A 24-year-old woman who was seriously injured Saturday when an alleged drunk driver slammed his pickup truck into her car remains in critical condition today at Queen's Hospital.

The truck ran into her Honda Civic from behind on Ala Moana Boulevard, fronting Comp USA at 2:23 a.m., police said. The man was apprehended after sideswiping two other cars and attempting to flee.

Rental motorcycle rider upgraded to fair status

A 31-year-old man from Japan who crashed his rental motorcycle Saturday near the Crouching Lion Inn has been upgraded from critical to fair condition.

The man's rented 1990 Honda motorcycle hit a guardrail on Kamehameha Highway at 10:35 a.m. Investigators believe the man did not have much experience handing a motorcycle.

Suspect booked on assault charge

A 50-year-old man was arrested yesterday for attacking a 61-year-old man in Mililani.

The suspect allegedly attacked the man, who was dropping off his sister in law at her Kamahana Place home at 2:10 a.m., police said. The suspect was booked for second-degree assault.