LOST HIKERS HELP RESCUERS FIND THEM
KULA - Two lost hikers used a cell phone to help a rescue crew find them Monday evening.
The hikers, a 17-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man, both visitors, lost their way along the Waiohuli Trail in the Polipoli Springs State Park trails system. They reported their predicament to emergency dispatch operators around 4:30 p.m., said Battalion Chief Frank Tam.
They used their phone to guide the Fire Department's Air One helicopter to their location. There, the helicopter crew hovered and guided firefighters on the ground to the hikers' location, Tam said.
The rescue crew walked the hikers out of the area before 6 p.m. They were uninjured, he said.
WASTEWATER SPILL FAILS TO REACH OCEAN
WAILUKU - A power outage and the failure of a backup generator led to a spill of approximately 10,000 gallons of wastewater on Monday morning in Paukukalo, the county Department of Environmental Management reported.
The overflow occurred around 10:14 a.m. at a pump station. Wastewater flowed out of a sewer manhole on Waiehu Beach Road and continued into a storm drain, from which a truck vacuumed the material.
County spokeswoman Mahina Martin said warning signs were posted at a nearby beach but initial tests showed no sewage reached the ocean. The area will be monitored, and tests will continue for three days, she said.
The state Department of Health was notified of the spill.
SUICIDE PREVENTION WORKSHOPS OFFERED
PUUNENE - A Department of Health workshop for "gatekeepers" who may come in contact with people considering suicide will be held Aug. 22-23 in Puunene and Sept. 11-12 on Molokai.
The two-day suicide prevention training will prepare individuals to recognize and respond to a crisis with a suicide intervention model. The workshop also will provide information on community resources.
A Health Department announcement said the session is intended for counselors, teachers, social workers, clergy, crisis workers, law enforcement officers and health workers, as well as the general public.
Cost of the workshop is $55 and participants are required to attend both days. For information on registration, cost and meeting locations, call (808) 733-9238 or (808) 733-9320.
The workshops are presented by the Injury Prevention Program in partnership with the Suicide Prevention Task Force and the Hawaii Suicide Prevention Education Awareness Research Foundation of America.
SUSTAINABILITY FORUM THURSDAY IN KIHEI
KIHEI - The SouthMauiSustainability group will hold a public forum from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the Garden Room of the Kalama Heights retirement complex.
The group seeks to promote sustainability awareness through education and action, including home-grown food, home-produced energy and sharing resources.
Speakers will include Rob Parsons, former Maui County environmental coordinator; Brad Albert of Hawaii PV Coalition; William Bennett on renewable energy; Marian Scott on growing food; and George Mateljan, author of "The World's Healthiest Foods."
Participants should use the Kalama Heights lower driveway. For information, e-mail maury@SouthMauiSustainability.org or go online to SouthMauiSustainability.org.
CHAMBER LEADER TO DISCUSS BAG BAN
KAHULUI - Maui Chamber of Commerce President Pamela Tumpap will discuss the county's economy and a bill to ban the use of plastic bags for retail purchases in Maui County during the "Opinions: Maui" program Thursday night on cable Channel 53.
The live call-in program hosted by Don Couch begins at 7 p.m. Viewers may call the show's phone number, 873-3430, to take part in the discussion.
Last month, the County Council's Public Works and Facilities Committee advanced the plastic-bag ban to the full council. It would prohibit retail businesses from giving out plastic bags at the point of sale beginning Jan. 11, 2011.
For more information, call Couch at 875-4197 or send him e-mail at don@opinionsmaui.com.
