Maui mayor upbeat
about helicopter service
WAILUKU >> Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa said he was "very optimistic" about his meeting yesterday with Gov. Linda Lingle asking her to release $1 million in state funds to provide emergency helicopter service for the Valley Isle, Molokai and Lanai.
Lingle said she would consult with Health Director Chiyome Fukino about ideas discussed at the meeting, Arakawa said yesterday.
"We had about a 45-minute discussion," Arakawa said. "She said she could see the merit of what we were doing."
Arakawa would not talk about specifics, but said part of the talks focused on amending the wording of a bill that passed in the 2003 Legislature.
One of Lingle's objections to the bill has been potential liability to the state if funds are provided for emergency helicopter service for Maui but not other neighbor islands.
The county has authorized spending $650,000 toward the service.
A number of areas in Maui County, including Hana, Molokai, Lanai and portions of west Maui, are more than an hour from emergency medical facilities, according to supporters of the bill.
Supporters say the emergency helicopter service would provide treatment for patients within the "golden hour" when medical help is critical.
Supporters argue that Maui has one 24-hour emergency medical facility and Lanai and Molokai have none, while the Big Island and Kauai each have more than one emergency center.
