Kaʻū News Briefs, Friday, December 21, 2018

Kīlauea Military Camp, above, welcomes guests during the partial shutdown of federal government. Volcano House, Volcano Art Center, displays at Kīlauea Visitor Center, and  Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association store are open, along with a number of park trails and overlooks. Photo from Kīlauea Military Camp

A PARTIAL FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN PROMPTED A PARTIAL HAWAI‘I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK CLOSURE this evening. "During the shutdown of the federal government due to a lapse of appropriations, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park will remain as accessible as possible while still following all applicable laws and procedures," says a statement from the Park this evening.

Volcano House is open for dining, shopping, and lodging. Photo from MacArthur Sotheby's Realty

     Entrance fees will not be charged. Some park roads, trails, and viewpoints remain accessible to visitors, but emergency and rescue services are limited.
     While the Kahuku Unit near Ocean View is closed, the public is able to enter the Volcano park gate at no charge.
     Kīlauea Visitor Center exhibits and Hawai‘i Pacific Parks Association store will be open, though the Kīlauea Visitor Center Theatre, which shows films to visitors, is closed. Also open are Volcano Art Center Gallery, Kīlauea Military Camp, and Volcano House, with their lodging, restaurants, and stores. Kīlauea Military Camp Theatre remains open.
     According to staff members at Volcano House, managers met late today to determine how to proceed with many guests checking in to accommodations and dining. They said the Park assured them the main gate to the Park will be open. Volcano House is operated by a private contractor able to pay its employees. Volcano Art Center Gallery and Hawai‘i Pacific Parks Association staffs work for non-profits, and KMC has separate funding. However, many National Park employees faced furloughed at 7 p.m. and will be unable to return until the government is funded.

VolcanoArtCenter Gallery is open, with its fireplace, Christmas in the Country, and 19th  Invitational Wreath exhibits. Photo from VAC

     Also open during the shutdown are Kīlauea Visitor Center picnic tables and restrooms; Crater Rim Drive from Park entrance to KMC; Crater Rim Trail between Volcano House and KMC; Steam Vents and Sulfur Banks; Mauna Loa Road to Kīpukapuaulu (vehicles not permitted past the gate at Kīpukapuaulu); Mauna Loa Road to Mauna Loa Lookout – pedestrians and bicyclists only; Kīpukapuaulu day use picnic area (no trash or custodial services – pack it in, pack it out only); Kīpukapuaulu and trail; and Ka‘ū Desert Trail to the Footprints shelter and exhibit.
THE PARTIAL FEDERAL SHUTDOWN BEGAN TODAY after the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate voted to fund the government without $5 billion for Pres. Donald Trump's wall along the southern mainland border. After Trump refused to sign the legislation, the House capitulated and voted to fund the wall. The Senate refused to fund the wall and partial funding for government lapsed. House and Senate leaders entered discussions on a compromise, and are expected to vote again whenever they reach a solution and the President agrees to it.

Kīlauea Visitor Center displays and Hawai‘i Pacific Parks Association store remain open during the government shutdown. Photo from KVC

     Sen. Mazie Hirono remained in her office after 9 p.m. in Washington, D.C. tonight. Interviewed on MSNBC, she noted Trump said earlier that he would take responsibility for the shutdown, but has turned to blaming others. "He has to grow up," she said.
     Hirono said federal workers will suffer, and noted she signed onto a bill for retroactive pay for those essential employees who work during the shutdown without paychecks, and those furloughed through no fault of their own.
     She posted on her Facebook that the Senate "did the responsible thing by unanimously passing a bill to keep the government running, but the President threw a wrench in the works. There are so many negative impacts to a shutdown - and the the President didn't care." She tweeted this evening,  "Donald Trump needs to face the reality that he won't get $5 billion for his wall and keep the government running." She said on MSNBC, Trump "is in meltdown mode and the only wall that's real is the one that's closing in on him."

     Sen. Brian Schatz tweeted: "Let's give a shout out to our extraordinary federal workforce. They are the ones being harmed by this nonsense, not any member of Congress."

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