The state agency in charge of Hawaiʻi’s homeless villages lacks the records to show how millions of dollars paid to a nonprofit to build hundreds of housing units was actually spent, a Civil Beat review of contract documents and invoices found. Since late 2023, the state has issued more than $37.1 million in no-bid contracts to HomeAid Hawaiʻi to build small dwellings as part of Gov. Josh Green’s signature Kauhale Initiative. While HomeAid has provided the Department of Human Services with balance sheets and supporting documents showing how it used...

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. A winter weather advisory has been issued for Hawaii's Big Island, where snow is forecast to fall on the summit of Mauna Kea through Friday. The National Weather Service (NWS) in Honolulu expects accumulations between 3 and 5 inches at elevations above 11,000 feet. Blowing snow could reduce visibility to near zero, prompting caution for drivers and summit visitors. Though snowfall may seem improbable in a tropical state, it's a familiar occurrence...

In the year following the devastating fires on Maui, the island’s residents became increasingly worried about the impacts of climate change. More than three-quarters of Maui residents said they were concerned about global warming in 2024, according to a national climate survey conducted annually by Yale University — a six percentage point increase from 2022. Despite the heightened concern, data shows a disconnect statewide between awareness of climate change and people’s perception that it will touch their lives directly.

'He is trying to kill me': Woman says doctor husband hit her 10 times with a rock on Hawaii hiking trail A doctor accused of trying to kill his wife on a Hawaii hiking trail allegedly hit her in the head with a rock about 10 times and tried to inject her with syringes before a witness intervened, according to court documents. Arielle Konig said she was on the Pali Puka Trail in Honolulu with her husband, Gerhardt Konig, on Monday when he stood near the edge and asked her...

She was struck with a rock and hospitalized in critical condition, police said. Doctor allegedly tries to kill wife at Hawaii hiking trail: Police A doctor is suspected of trying to kill his wife by hitting her with a rock and attempting to push her off a hiking trail in Hawaii, according to police. Gerhardt Konig, 46, and his wife were at Pali Lookout on Oahu on Monday morning when Konig tried to push her off the trail and struck her in the head with a rock, the Honolulu Police...

SALT LAKE CITY — It might be spring now, but Delta Air Lines is looking at expanding options for Utah travelers looking to avoid the next round of winter blues. Delta Air Lines will begin daily, nonstop service between Salt Lake City International Airport and Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport in Hawaii beginning on Dec. 19, Salt Lake airport officials announced on Monday. "The Big Island will be more accessible than ever, just in time for the holidays," airport officials added in a post to social media. Travel + Leisure...

Hawaiʻi has agreed to open its prisons and jails for inspection by two national experts who will assess the state’s troubled inmate mental health services. The agreement was reached as part of ongoing efforts to resolve a federal lawsuit filed in 2019 over prisoner suicides. There is no agreement yet on financial aspects of the case. The experts will produce a plan to improve the state’s correctional mental health system, which has been falling far short of filling critical positions such as psychologists, psychiatrists and advanced practice registered nurses. Twenty...

The Kīlauea volcano has now erupted 14 times since December on the Island of Hawai'i, geologists confirmed. The eruption lasted 29 hours between 9:26 a.m. Hawaiian time Wednesday through 1:49 p.m. Thursday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. During the last eight hours, fountains shot up to 600 feet high, mainly through the south vent at the closed area of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. Video shared on social media captured the lava shooting up and flowing on the ground. "Way over the rim. This the biggest fountain I've seen yet,"...

It was a long flight back from Hawaiʻi to Aotearoa. It gave me time to reflect on a busy week of meetings with Native Hawaiian advocates for geothermal energy, Hawaiʻi’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, and Hawaiʻi island lawmakers interested in learning more about the treasure that the island possesses in terms of untapped energy. I was in Hawaii at the invitation of Waika Consulting, a company formed by the Innovations Development Group with whom I have worked on geothermal projects for two Maori trusts in Aotearoa (New...

Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency is considering terminating the lease of a tiny office that supports a huge climate science experiment - one that's been ongoing for 67 years. Just eight people work in suite 102 at the Kilauea Financial Plaza in Hilo, on the big island of Hawaii. Once a week or so, one of them takes a short helicopter ride to the northern slope of the Mauna Loa volcano – necessary because in 2022 an eruption buried more than a mile of the road in 30 feet...