Hawaii

Here's why small tsunami waves still trigger mass evacuations worldwide

A powerful 8.8 earthquake struck off Russia's Kamchatka coast, triggering tsunami warnings and evacuation orders across multiple Pacific nations, including Japan, Hawaii, and Chile

Tsunami alert: India warns citizens in US after 8.8 earthquake hits Russia

A massive 8.8 earthquake off Russia's coast triggered tsunami alerts across Pacific nations; India warns citizens in California, Hawaii, and US coastal areas to follow safety advisories

Honolulu lawsuit against fossil fuel firms leads climate change legal fight

Honolulu is not alone in its effort to sue fossil fuel companies to hold them accountable for climate change harms, but the city's lawsuit is further along than similar litigation across the country. A hearing on Tuesday will indicate how these fights play out in court. In 2020, Hawaii's capital city sued major oil companies, including ExxonMobil, Shell and Chevron, arguing they knew for nearly half a century that fossil fuel products create greenhouse gas pollution that warms the planet and changes the climate. The companies have also profited from the consumption of oil, coal and natural gas while deceiving the public about the role of their products in causing a global climate crisis, the lawsuit says. Honolulu's lawsuit blames the companies for the sea level rise around the island of Oahu's world-famous coastline. It also warns that hurricanes, heatwaves and other extreme weather will be more frequent, along with ocean warming that will reduce fish stocks and kill coral reefs tha

From Hawaii to Iran: Trump's remark spotlights US history of regime change

Trump's 'Make Iran Great Again' remark reignites debate over the US' long, covert history of regime change, from royal overthrows to Cold War coups and modern-day military interventions

Mega-tsunami on the horizon? US coastal states may have only 10-min to flee

A massive earthquake along the Cascadia Subduction Zone could trigger a devastating mega-tsunami, threatening Alaska, Hawaii, and the Pacific Northwest with little warning

Trump admin sues Hawaii, Michigan to block planned climate change lawsuits

Neither state has sued yet. Hawaii Governor Josh Green told a local TV station that his state plans to sue fossil fuel companies as soon as Thursday

Tsunami warning lifted in Hawaii after 7.1 earthquake, no damage reported

A strong 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit near Tonga, prompting an initial tsunami warning that was later lifted for the Pacific island country. The US Geological Survey said the quake hit about 100 kilometres northeast of the main island in the early morning hours of Monday local time. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued an alert saying hazardous waves could be possible but later said there was no longer a tsunami threat. Tsunami sirens could be heard after the 1:18 am quake urging residents to move inland, according to the Talanoa o Tonga news site. There were no initial reports of damage. Residents in the Ha'apai island group had calmly moved to higher ground, the report said. Tonga is a country in Polynesia made up of 171 islands with a population of a little more than 100,000 people, most of whom live on the main island of Tongatapu. It is more than 3,500 kilometres off Australia's east coast.

Explosion at a beachside resort in Hawaii injures 7 people, scatters debris

A suspected gas explosion in the grill area of a Hawaii beachside resort has injured seven people, including three in critical condition, according to hotel management and police on Maui. The explosion Thursday night left a pile of debris at The Whaler on Kaanapali Beach, a popular tourist area where a string of hotels, timeshares and rental properties line white sands. It's a few miles north of downtown Lahaina, which almost completely burned in a deadly 2023 wildfire. People in the surrounding area did not have to evacuate, the Maui Police Department said, and preliminary investigations suggested liquefied petroleum gas, which supplies barbecue grills in the resort's common area, was involved in the explosion. The seven injured people ranged in age from 18 to 74, police said. Video of the area shared on social media shows an explosion happening outdoors near a swimming pool, and that debris was scattered near the beach. The Whaler said the blast happened at their Tower One barbec

Hawaii court rules against insurance firms in Maui fire, allows settlement

Hawaii's Supreme Court ruled Monday that insurance companies can't bring their own legal actions against those blamed for Maui's catastrophic 2023 wildfire, allowing a $4 billion settlement that was on that the verge of collapse to proceed. Other steps remain in finalizing the deal between thousands of people who lodged lawsuits and various defendants, including Hawaiian Electric Company. The massive inferno that was the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a century decimated the historic town of Lahaina, killing more than 100 people, destroying thousands of properties and causing an estimated $5.5 billion in damage. Soon afterward, attorneys began lodging hundreds of lawsuits. A settlement was announced last summer, but insurance companies held out, insisting that they should have the right to go after the defendants separately to recoup money paid out to policyholders. Monday's ruling resolves a key roadblock to finalizing the deal and sends the case back to a Maui judge to determ

Taiwan prez meets Hawaii's Guv, members of Congress; China condemns visit

On a two-day visit to Hawaii, Taiwan's president Lai Ching-te met with the state's governor and congressional representatives as part of a Pacific island tour that has already triggered criticism from Beijing. On Sunday, China's Foreign Ministry said it strongly condemned US support for Lai's visit and lodged a complaint with the US. It also denounced a newly announced US weapons sale to Taiwan, a self-governing island that China claims as its own territory. China will closely monitor the situation's development, and take resolute and forceful measures to safeguard the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, said the statement. Hawaii was Lai's first stop on a weeklong voyage that will later take him to the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau. They account for three of the 12 countries Taipei has formal diplomatic relations with. Hawaii's Gov Josh Green on Saturday hosted Lai at the state's emergency management agency where they discussed disaster preparedness. Green, who w

Taiwan Prez thanks US for his Hawaii transit stop, vows to maintain peace

Earlier in the day, Lai visited the USS Arizona Memorial, where he laid a wreath to honour those who perished during the 1941 Japanese attack

Hawaii's Big Island under storm warning as Hone approaches with rain, wind

Tropical Storm Hone is expected to whip gusts and drop rain on the southern edges of Hawaii this weekend, potentially inflicting flooding and wind damage on the Big Island and raising the risk of wildfires on the drier sides of the islands. The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm warning for Hawaii County, which includes all of the Big Island and a red flag warning for the leeward sides of all islands. Hone, which means sweet and soft in Hawaiian, will likely gradually strengthen and become a strong tropical storm as it passes south of the islands Saturday and Sunday, the National Weather Service said. It's expected to become a Category 1 hurricane for a 12-hour period on Sunday but will likely be past the Big Island by that point, said Laura Farris, a weather service meteorologist in Honolulu. The Hawaii Tourism Authority told travellers it's still safe to come to the islands but recommended that people postpone outdoor activities. We are not advising visitors to

Amid US scrutiny Alaska extends period for Hawaiian Airlines acquisition

Shortages of new planes, jet engines and pilots have spurred US airlines to pursue growth through acquisitions, putting them in the crosshairs of anti-trust regulators

Biden may decide whether to remain in presidential race: Hawaii governor

President Joe Biden could make a decision within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection, said Hawaii's governor who participated in a recent meeting with Biden and other Democratic governors and whose family has known the president for years. And if Biden decides not to run, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that he believes the president will designate Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the ticket. I think the president stays in this race unless he feels that it is not winnable, or he feels that he has to hear other voices in his inner circle that he shouldn't run, Green said. If the president felt that he wasn't up to it and truly not up to it, he would step down." We'll probably know in the next couple of days how the president feels about all this, he said. Biden has repeatedly insisted that he will remain in the race against his likely Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. But questions about Biden's mental acuity

Maui highlight steps toward rebuilding as 1-yr mark of wildfire approaches

Nearly a year after wind-whipped flames raced through Kim Ball's Hawaii community, the empty lot where his house once stood is a symbol of some of the progress being made toward rebuilding after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than century destroyed thousands of homes and killed 102 people in Lahaina. Welcome to the neighborhood, Ball said Wednesday as he greeted a van full of Hawaii reporters invited by Maui County officials to tour certain fire-ravaged sites. The gravel covering lots on his street in Lahaina indicate which properties have been cleared of debris and toxic ash in the months since the Aug. 8, 2023, blaze. On the lots along Komo Mai Street, there are pockets of green poking up through still visible charred vegetation. Speaking over the noise from heavy equipment working across the street, Ball described how he was able to get a building permit quickly, partly because his home was only about 5 years old and his contractor still had the plans. Ball wants to rebuild

Hawaii wildfire death toll hits 102 as another victim succumbs to injuries

The death toll from the deadliest US wildfire in over a century, which devastated the historic town of Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui last year, has risen to 102, authorities said Monday. Claudette Heermance, 68, died in hospice care in Honolulu on March 28 of injuries suffered in the fire. The Maui Police Department announced the death, citing information from the Honolulu medical examiner's office. Heermance suffered burns on 20 per cent of her body and her case was complicated by multiple other conditions, said Dr. Masahiko Kobayashi, the Honolulu medical examiner. She was initially taken to Maui's hospital the day of the fire but was flown to Oahu the next day to be treated at the state's only burn unit. She entered hospice nearly four months later. Other causes of death included cardiovascular disease, end-stage renal disease and pressure ulcers, said another official from the medical examiner's office who refused to give her name. The August 8 wildfire was already th

Hawaii settles climate change lawsuit from youths: All you need to know

About two years after 13 children and teens sued Hawaii over the threat posed by climate change, both sides reached a settlement that includes an ambitious requirement to decarbonize the state's transportation system over the next 21 years. It's another example of a younger generation channeling their frustration with the government's response to the climate crisis into a legal battle. Navahine v. Hawaii Department of Transportation is the world's first youth-led constitutional climate case addressing climate pollution from the transportation sector, according to statements from both sides. The lawsuit said one plaintiff, a 14-year-old Native Hawaiian, was from a family that farmed taro for more than 10 generations. However, extreme droughts and heavy rains caused by climate change have reduced crop yields and threatened her ability to continue the cultural practice. The complaint said rising sea levels also threaten to put their lands underwater. Another plaintiff lost her home .

Maui fire dept to release after-action report on deadly Hawaii wildfires

The Maui Fire Department is expected to release a report Tuesday detailing how the agency responded to a series of wildfires that burned on the island during a windstorm last August including one that killed 101 people in the historic town of Lahaina and became the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. The release comes one day before the Hawaii Attorney General is expected to release the first phase of a separate comprehensive investigation about the events before, during and after the Aug. 8 fires. The reports could help officials understand exactly what happened when the wind-whipped fire overtook the historic Maui town of Lahaina, destroying roughly 3,000 properties and causing more than $5.5 billion in estimated damage, according to state officials. The Western Fire Chiefs Association produced the after-action report for the Maui Fire Department. After-action reports are frequently used by military organizations, emergency response agencies, government entities and .

US Navy plans to raise jet plane off Hawaii coral reef using cylinders

The U.S. Navy plans to use inflatable cylinders to lift and roll a jet plane off a coral reef in Hawaii before removal from the ocean waters where the aircraft crashed on November 20. Rear Adm. Kevin Lenox, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 3 who is leading the salvage effort, said Friday he is confident the operation can be carried out without further damaging the reef. The P-8A slammed into an environmentally sensitive bay about 10 miles (16 kilometres) from Honolulu when it overshot the runway at Marine Corps Base Hawaii. None of the nine people on board at the time were injured. The Navy is investigating the mishap. The Navy released underwater video on Wednesday showing landing gear wheels resting on parts of crushed coral and much of the rest of the plane floating above the reef in Kaneohe Bay. A Navy team already has removed nearly all of the estimated 2,000 gallons (7,500 litre) of fuel that was on the aircraft. Lenox said he expected the removal operation to get under

Congressional hearing on Maui wildfire to focus on island's electric grid

Hawaii's top public utility officials and the president of Hawaiian Electric are expected to testify Thursday in a congressional hearing about the role the electrical grid played in last month's deadly Maui wildfire. Members of a U.S. House Energy and Commerce subcommittee are expected to question the utility officials about how the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century began and whether the electrical grid in Lahaina was safe and properly maintained. The fire killed at least 97 people and destroyed more than 2,000 buildings, mostly homes. It first erupted at 6:30 a.m. on Aug. 8, when strong winds appeared to cause a Hawaiian Electric powerline to fall, igniting dry brush and grass near a large subdivision. Among those expected to testify are Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura, Hawaii Public Utilities Commission Chair Leodoloff Asuncion Jr. and Hawaii Chief Energy Officer Mark Glick. Energy and Commerce Committee chair Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers; Oversight and ...