Good evening, Hawaii. A mobile morgue has arrived on Maui to help identify the wildfire victims. The death toll stands at 101. There are thousands of missing pets on the island, Maui Humane Society offers advice on what to do if you find an animal or if you're missing your pet. On Hawaii Island, Kilauea is not erupting, but it showing signs of "elevated unrest." Read about the important stories you need to know.
Your Weather Planner
Trade winds are turning breezy through Thursday as Tropical Storm Greg passes to the south of the islands. Trades will weaken by Friday into the weekend. Dry conditions will stick around through the weekend with showers favoring windward slopes and coasts. Beginning early next week, wet trade wind weather could return as the remnants of Hurricane Fernanda move through the state.
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Today's Big Stories
1. Mobile morgue arrives to assist in identification of 101 confirmed dead in Maui wildfires
A mobile morgue unit arrived Tuesday to help Hawaii officials working painstakingly to identify the 101 people confirmed killed in wildfires that ravaged Maui, and officials expected to release the first list of names even as teams intensified the search for more dead in neighborhoods reduced to ash.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services deployed a team of coroners, pathologists and technicians along with exam tables, X-ray units and other equipment to identify victims and process remains, said Jonathan Greene, the agency's deputy assistant secretary for response.
“It’s going to be a very, very difficult mission,” Greene said. “And patience will be incredibly important because of the number of victims.”
A week after a blaze tore through historic Lahaina, many survivors started moving into hundreds of hotel rooms set aside for displaced locals while donations of food, ice, water and other essentials poured in.
Crews using cadaver dogs have scoured about 32% of the area, the County of Maui said in a statement Tuesday. Gov. Josh Green asked for patience as authorities became overwhelmed with requests to visit the burn area.
2. Thousands of pets still missing after Maui fires
As search-and-recover operations continue for human victims of the West Maui fires, Maui Humane Society staffers are engaged in their own efforts to find, capture and care for thousands of lost pets, reunite survivors with their owners and document animals that perished in the fires.
In addition, MHS is also providing pet food and supplies to evacuation centers and other areas in need of supplies and veterinary care.
MHS CEO Lisa Labrecque updated media about the organization’s daily operations at a news conference on Monday and said it is working closely with Maui police to make sure teams work only in areas that have been cleared.
As workers collect stray and deceased animals, locations are pinned, and the animals checked for identification and scanned for microchips.
Labrecque asked the public not to move or dispose of deceased animals, so MHC workers have a chance to catalog and check the animals for identification.
“People are desperately searching for their pets and they have been incredibly grateful to our team for any closure that we’re able to give them,” she said.
3. Kilauea volcano exhibits signs of elevated unrest
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory announced in a news release that the Kilauea summit is “exhibiting signs of elevated unrest.” However, the volcano is not currently erupting.
The current volcano alert level is “advisory.”
Over the past week, earthquake rates beneath Kilauea’s summit increased from an average of 20 per day to 40 per day. On Aug. 13, there were 100 earthquakes, including a magnitude-4.3 earthquake that was felt across Hawaii Island. Other earthquakes were smaller, averaging about magnitude-2.
Similar to conditions before Kilauea’s most recent eruption, ground deformation rates are high at the summit.
According to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, the earthquakes and ground deformation rates are signs that magma is accumulating beneath Kilauea summit. An eruption might begin with little warning, but the volcano observatory said the signs do not suggest an eruption is imminent.
4. HECO CEO: 'There are choices that need to be made'
The risks of cutting power to people who rely on specialized medical equipment and affecting the supply of water available to firefighters were factors in Maui Electric Co.’s decision not to de-energize power lines in West Maui as high winds threatened to topple utility poles and, later, as those same winds fanned the flames that reduced Lahaina town to ash, according to Hawaiian Electric Co. CEO Shelee Kimura.
Fielding questions from reporters during a news briefing hosted by Gov. Josh Green on Monday, Kimura noted that Hawaii does not have a Public Safety Power Shutoff program, like those in California and other states, through which utilities may shut off power when there is an elevated threat of electrical infrastructure causing or exacerbating fires.
“We, like most utilities, don’t have that program,” she said. “And it’s worth noting that even in places where this has been used, it’s controversial and it’s not universally accepted.”
Over the weekend, a class-action suit was filed by LippSmith LLP, Foley Bezek Behle & Curtis LLP and Robertson & Associates LLP on behalf of Lahaina residents Monica and Rede Eder and other West Maui homeowners whose properties were lost during the fires.
The suit alleges that HECO was aware of the risk its infrastructure posed under the high-wind conditions but did not act appropriately to prevent their power lines from causing or contributing to the deadly fires.
“It can be seen as creating a hardship for those customers that have medical needs or that are at higher risk,” Kimura said of Public Safety Power Shutoff programs. “So, these programs, particularly for elders or other vulnerable people who have specialized medical equipment, this can be a very high risk for them. That’s why many (utilities) don’t have it."
5. A look at the 19 people charged in Georgia indictment connected to Trump election scheme
Donald Trump and 18 other associates were charged Monday in Georgia as part of a sweeping indictment alleging they schemed to illegally overturn his 2020 election loss and stop the peaceful transition of power.
The indictment, brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, follows an investigation that lasted more than two years and marks the fourth criminal case brought against the former president.
Those named in Monday's indictment face a slew of charges, including racketeering, violating the oath of a public officer, forgery, false statements and other offenses. Prosecutors say they must all surrender to authorities by Aug. 25.
Click the link above for a look at the 19 defendants charged in the indictment.
Your Notes for Tomorrow
Wednesday, August 16
- Mike Pence keynotes GOP breakfast at NCSL Summit
- 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup soccer tournament continues with second semifinal
- Docu-series about the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard defamation trial on Netflix
- Madonna celebrates 65th birthday
- World Robot Conference (WRC). Includes exhibition and contests
- Roller Coaster Day Weekend Celebration
- National Airborne Day, created in 2001 to honor soldiers who have served in an airborne capacity, and coinciding with the anniversary of the first-ever official U.S. Army parachute jump
- Tuskegee Airmen National Convention
- What: Celebrating Mixology Month
- Where: International Market Place | 2330 Kalakaua Ave., Honolulu | 808-921-0536
- Details: International Market Place celebrates “cocktail culture” throughout the month of August. The Battle of the Bartenders, sponsored by KoHana Rum, will take place on Aug. 16. Visit the International Market Place website for details.
- What: Drop off donations to Maui Food Bank
- Where: King's Cathedral | 777 Maui Veterans Hwy., Kahului
- Details: The Maui Food Bank is accepting donations of rice, canned proteins and meals (pop-tops), snacks, protein and breakfast bars, peanut butter, jelly, baby food, baby formula, baby wipes, diapers, feminine hygiene products, toothpaste and toothbrushes, toilet paper, paper towels and other toiletries. The Central Maui King's Catherdral donation site in Kahului is also a shelter and meal distribution center. It's open daily 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Visit the food bank's website for up-to-date info.
- What: Live Musical Performance by Kiliona Young
- Where: Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium | Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
- Details: Listen to stories of love, hope, struggle and truth shared through melodies and rhythms found in traditional Hawaiian music, reggae, blues, hip hop and soul as performed by musician and songwriter Kiliona Young, 7-8 p.m. Aug. 16. Performance is free, but park entry fee applies.
- What: Small Biz Talks
- Where: Alakoko Shop | 2976 Kress St., Lihue
- Details: If you have questions about starting a business, expand a business or other small business-related topic, join this in-person and virtual event with speaker Robbie Melton, 3:30 p.m. Aug. 16 (every third Wednesday of the month). For those attending in person, there will be a Q&A session, 4-5 p.m. Register for in-person attendance or attend online via Alakoko Shop on Instagram.
For more on these and other events, see this week's HI Out & About.
In Case You Missed It
Hawaii-born former hockey pro Jessica Koizumi looks to grow game with local clinics
The origins of Jessica Koizumi’s frigid career calling began in, of all places, Hawaii.
A childhood skating session at Ice Palace at age 7, just before her family moved to Minnesota, was a fond first memory of being on the ice. She loved it.
After some initial objections to the move to the frigid Midwest, Koizumi wanted to do what all the other kids were doing in the Land of 10,000 Lakes: hockey.
“I haven't looked back since,” Koizumi told Spectrum News in a recent interview. “It encompasses my whole entire life. I have my best friends, my career, my education, everything came through the sport of hockey.”
After moving to California at 11 and playing with the boys until age 15, Koizumi went on to become an accomplished college athlete, a professional in the burgeoning North America women’s hockey leagues, and even a member of Team USA. She went on to be an assistant coach at Yale, Ohio State and Vermont for 13 years.
And now, Koizumi, 38, is returning to the islands in the hope of passing on some of what she learned to the next generation of local girls. It's in line with her new career path of helping high schoolers in New England play at the next level.
Click the link above for more on this story.