Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Thursday, Nov. 26, 2015

RESIDENTS CAN BE THANKFUL that Hawai`i Department of Health has downgraded Ka`u’s risk level of dengue fever from high to moderate. A map released yesterday also shows Ka`u’s area at risk as smaller than previously.

      As of yesterday, 101 cases had been confirmed on Hawai`i Island, with 78 cases being adults and 23 under 18 years of age. Onset of illness ranged from Sept. 15 to Nov. 17. A total of 190 reported potential cases have been excluded based on test results and/or not meeting case criteria.
      A Mauna Loa Estates resident reported that a state Department of Health official notified her family that a case was confirmed near Ninth and Ruby Streets. Area residents should take extra precautions, including wearing long sleeves and long pants and using insect repellent on exposed skin.
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THE 2015 HIKI NO BEST NEWS Writing Award went to Kua o ka La Public Charter School’s Miloli`i Hipu`u Virtual Academy. Hiki No is aired on PBS Hawai'i and is the first statewide news program in the country that is produced and edited by students in public and private schools.

      The winning feature story, Mauna Kea TMT, dealt with student Hoku Subiono’s struggle with his love of science and respect for Hawaiian culture as opponents of the Thirty Meter Telescope project held vigil on Mauna Kea. Students created the story with guidance from instructors. Subiono wrote and edited the segment, and his fellow students Dazza Kuahuia, David Watai-Simeona and Quinton Kuahuia assisted.
      Hiki No Executive Producer Robert Pennybacker presented the award in Miloli`i on Nov. 9.
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KA`U RESIDENTS CAN VOTE FOR HAWAI`I Wildlife Fund through Dec. 31 during Subaru`s Share the Love event. A $5,000 donation will be given to the nonprofit with the most votes at the end of the promotional period.

      HWF sponsors several Ka`u Coast Cleanups each year, with the next one coming up on Saturday, Dec. 5. Sign up at kahakai.cleaups@gmail.com. 

      The organization is coordinating the event with attendees of the 2015 Hilo Symposium on Marine Debris & Tsunami Driftage taking place on Friday, Dec. 4.
      It is also currently accepting donations to help with costs involved in hosting this event, including some travel stipends for off-island participants from the Pacific Northwest (Canada, Alaska, Oregon, Washington and California), other Hawaiian Islands and Japan.
      See subaruhawaii.com/share-the-love.
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SHANIA LEE SILVA WON the annual Rubberband Turkey Shoot at Pahala Community Center yesterday. Participants shot rubberbands at targets in hopes of taking home a turkey to cook today.
      The event also featured a Turkey Coloring Contest. Winners were CeAndra K., Diane L., ShaniaLee S., Kalia G., Cileyna K.
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VOLCANO SCIENTISTS FROM HAWAI`I, Chile, Indonesia, Italy and Japan participated in a workshop at the Mount Fuji Research Institute in Japan in early November. Talks and discussions focused on the best ways to protect tourists in active volcanic areas. Hawai`i Volcano Observatory scientists discuss the workshop in the current issue of Volcano Watch.
      “Japanese volcanologists have been quite concerned about the possible effects of a Mount Fuji eruption on the thousands of visitors who hike up the sacred mountain every day, the article states.” Rightfully so. “In Sept. 2014, an unexpected phreatic eruption of Mount Ontake, the second highest volcano in Japan (after Fuji), killed 57 hikers. Then, in late June 2015, a small ash eruption occurred at Mount Hakone, but potentially active areas were already closed, and there were no injuries or deaths.

      “Japan has 110 active volcanoes (including submarine volcanoes), 47 of which are continuously monitored for signs of unrest. During the workshop, Japanese speakers representing volcano science and monitoring, the tourist industry, media and police described measures currently in place and those planned to protect tourists on Japan’s volcanoes, specifically, Fuji, Hakone and Unzen.
      “At Mount Fuji, in addition to tourists, approximately 560,000 residents live within its evacuation zones. During the summer, about 300,000 mountaineers visit Fuji, with up to 10,000 people climbing the volcano each day. Possible eruptive products for this volcano include lava flows, snowmelt mudflows and ashfall—a ‘kaleidoscope of eruption’ per Japanese scientists.

      “Methods to communicate hazards to and evacuate residents are similar to those in other countries. The challenge, however, is communicating with and evacuating hikers on Fuji, potentially in a short period of time.

      “Four main trails reach Fuji’s summit – Yoshida, Subashiri, Gotemba and Fujinomiya. “On Yoshida and Subashiri, the trail for ascent is completely different from the trail for descent. Mountain huts are numerous on ascending trails, but sparse on descending trails.

      “To reach and warn hikers on Mount Fuji, communication must be established to the network of mountain huts, but this does not help on trails with few huts. Therefore, alternate means of communicating with hikers are being considered.       “Japanese scientists have evaluated the specific effects of several different eruption scenarios and have devised hiker evacuation routes for each scenario. The evacuation zones are meant to minimize exposure to ashfall at varying distances from the most recent and likely future volcanic vents. Scientists have also compiled the 17 most prominent steepest-descent paths for lava flows on Fuji, and each path has its own evacuation route.

      “Other workshop presenters also talked about recent volcanic activity in their respective countries and how hazards were communicated to visitors and residents. ...
      “A USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist at the workshop summarized the recent lava flow threat to Pahoa. Impacts there were mainly to private property and not within a park, so tourist opportunities were not the top priority. However, Hawai`i County did eventually open a viewing area at the Pahoa Solid Waste Transfer Station for several months after the lava flow threat had diminished.
      “Kilauea Volcano’s ongoing eruptions attract nearly two million visitors to Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park each year. If and when Mauna Loa erupts, that number is sure to increase. Workshops, like the one at Mount Fuji, are invaluable opportunities to gain and share information on how to safely manage tourism on Hawai`i’s active volcanoes.”
      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch.

Crafters at Cooper Center offer shopping alternatives tomorrow and Saturday. Photo from Cooper Center

KRHCAI's Floating Lantern Celebration is Saturday. Photo by Julia Neal