Gen. McCaffrey to rejoin 25th Infantry unit
Brig. Gen. Todd B. McCaffrey will return to the islands for his fourthtour with the 25th Infantry Division, this time as one of its deputy commanders, the Army announced last week.
McCaffrey is now at the Pentagon as director of Army training.
He will likely replace Brig. Gen. Burdett K. Thompson as deputy commanding general in charge of support operations this summer. Thompson’s appointment to Camp Smith as deputy director for strategic planning and policy at the U.S. Pacific Command was announced by the Army last week.
McCaffrey graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., in 1986. He first served at Schofield Barracks as battalion personnel officer and a company commander in the 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry. He was then aide to the commanding general, deploying to Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti in January 1995.
As a colonel, McCaffrey assumed command of the 25th Division’s 2nd Stryker Brigade and led it during the brigade’s 15-month combat deployment to Iraq from 2007 to 2009.
He was assigned to the Army Staff in January 2011 and served as executive officer to the Director of the Army Staff. Following his selection for brigadier general, he became the Army’s director of training in July 2011.
No sharks seen, warning signs come down
Lifeguards removed shark warning signs at Nanakuli Beach Park on Sunday after none of the predators was spotted through the morning, a spokeswoman for the city Ocean Safety Division said.
Signs were posted Saturday afternoon after an aggressive, feeding shark was seen. Lifeguards confirmed the sighting of the 8-foot shark and advised beachgoers to stay out of the water, a spokeswoman for the division said.
Warning signs were also posted at Nanakuli Beach Park on Jan. 12 and 13. There were three shark sightings in October and November.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Drowning victim was New Yorker
The visitor who drowned Saturday in waters off Lydgate Beach on Kauai has been identified as David Nichols of Mount Kisco, N.Y.
According to the Kauai Fire Department, Nichols, 65, was swimming with his daughter in waters off the south end of the beach, known as Kitchens, near the Wailua Golf Course.
Officials said Nichols’ daughter swam in and called 911 at 3:25 p.m. when she became concerned for his welfare.
Lifeguards located Nichols, who was unresponsive, about 25 yards offshore.
Firefighters performed CPR, and paramedics took him to Wilcox Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
County officials said Nichols is the third reported ocean drowning on Kauai this year.
Paraglider pilot stuck in tree
Hawaii County firefighters rescued a man tangled in a tree after a paragliding crash above Honaunau in an old coffee field Saturday.
The paraglider pilot told firefighters he went into a downward spiral about 300 to 400 feet up before crashing.
Firefighters assessed his injuries and took him to an ambulance for transport to Kona Community Hospital after the crash at 11:07 a.m. No details on the man’s injuries or his condition were available.
The National Weather Service, meanwhile, has issued a high-wind advisory for parts of Hawaii island through 6 p.m. today.
The agency said northeast winds of 25 to 35 mph, gusting to 50 mph, could affect areas west of the Kohala Mountains, as well as Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the island of Lanai and the summit of Haleakala on Maui.
