Hawaii’s alarming spike in snorkeling deaths this year got some national attention Wednesday. In a “CBS This Morning” segment filmed here, reporter Vladimir Duthiers noted that there have been 10 snorkeling-related deaths already this year, compared with an average year’s 17. Focus quickly fell on the increasingly popular full-face snorkel masks, which have been involved in four of this year’s deaths.

Duthiers noted that a local committee and the Hawaii Department of Health are now looking into snorkel-related deaths. The issue is certainly of high interest in tourist-laden Hawaii, and particularly to snorkelers; the report is at www.cbsnews.com/news/hawaii-full-face-snorkel-mask-related-deaths.

Good news for government projects needing money

The Council on Revenues has increased the predicted growth rate of the general fund, offering some help with paying down unfunded liabilities and other bills. Legislators are breathing a tad easier now — and they’re not the only ones. An increase in the general excise tax revenue means a bit more cash from the GET surcharge, a rare piece of good news for the city’s rail project. Some of that money is thanks to the rising numbers of tourists, feeding both the GET and tourist-tax coffers.

The down side (and there always is one): Won’t this take the urgency out of bills to boost tax revenue? We’ll see.