Applicants sought for sanctuary council
The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary is seeking applicants for seats on its advisory council.
The sanctuary said Thursday it needs people to fill 10 primary seats and 14 alternate seats representing various industries, interests and communities.
The vacant seats represent commercial shipping, whale watching, ocean recreation and conservation. The sanctuary also needs people to represent the islands of Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Hawaii and the Native Hawaiian community.
Candidates are selected based on their expertise and experience in relation to the seat they’re seeking. The sanctuary also considers the community and professional affiliations of applicants as well as their views on the protection and management of marine resources.
Applications are due Sept. 30.
The sanctuary is administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the state of Hawaii.
Fire victims’ ID to rely on teeth
Hawaii County police are awaiting dental records to confirm the identities of the man and woman found in the rubble of an early morning Hilo house fire Thursday.
Police Capt. Robert Wagner of the Criminal Investigations Division (Area 1) said the bodies appear to be those of the people living at the house at 917 Wainaku Ave.
Police and fire investigators could not determine how the house caught on fire, Wagner said.
"There’s nothing to indicate so far that foul play was involved," he said.
The fire was reported at 1:08 a.m. Responding firefighters and patrol officers found the house fully engulfed, police said. Firefighters discovered the bodies after extinguishing the fire.
An autopsy was conducted Friday morning, but so far no cause of death has been released.
Chaplain Corps will aid police
The Kauai Police Department announced Thursday the formation of the Police Chaplain Corps, which will provide support and encouragement to department personnel and their families.
The five police chaplains are Thomas Contrades, Kevin Cram, Steven Franks, Alpha Goto and Thomas Iannucci. They represent various faiths but offer support on an on-call, voluntary basis regardless of religious affiliation.
"Our Police Department is very grateful to have a team of chaplains who are well-respected members of both their faith organizations and our local Kauai community," Police Chief Darryl Perry said in a news release. "All of our chaplains are providing this service to KPD as volunteers, at no charge to the department or our officers."
