Newswatch

Governor’s press secretary leaving job

Louise Kim McCoy, who has served as Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s communications director and press secretary since November, is leaving the post.

Kim McCoy said her last day in the office is the end of this month. She will take unused vacation until formally leaving the post by year’s end.

Kim McCoy said she and her husband, Jim McCoy, a public-relations specialist, are moving to the Pacific Northwest. The couple’s daughter graduated from the University of Oregon and a son is now attending the University of Washington.

"This is something that we’ve been actively thinking about and planning for a while," Kim McCoy said.

Kim McCoy, former press secretary for Mayor Peter Carlisle and a former television reporter, is the third communications director on Abercrombie’s staff since he took office in December 2010.

Drill helps participants prepare for quake

HILO » Hawaii is joining an international effort to teach people what to do in the event of a large earthquake.

The Great Hawaii Shakeout is an informal opportunity for schools, businesses and individuals to prepare in a manner similar to a fire drill, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports.

Participants are asked to take a minute or more beginning at 10:17 a.m. today to pretend that an earthquake is happening, then practice getting into safe positions.

Janet Babb, education and outreach specialist at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said everyone needs to know what to do during a large earthquake. Babb said people should drop to the floor before they are thrown off balance. "Get under a sturdy table or desk, and if you can’t do that, get down next to a wall without things above you to fall over," she said.

Hawaii’s Shakeout is part of a larger, global effort with more than 16 million registered participants.

Visit  shakeout.org/hawaii.

Researchers study Hawaiian squid’s glow

The bioluminescence of the Hawaiian bobtail squid is the focus of new research by microbiologists at the University of New Hampshire, funded by a three-year, $716,000 grant from the National Science Foundation.

In exchange for a home and nutrients, a bacterium known as Vibrio fischeri lights up the squid’s underside at night, fooling predators below into thinking they are seeing moonlight.

"Why some closely related bacteria evolve to become trusted partners with their hosts while others evolve to cause disease remains unknown," Cheryl Whistler, the principal investigator, said in a statement Wednesday.

Maui’s mayor seeks new term

WAILUKU » Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa is running for re-election, and the councilman who was considering running against him is bowing out. Arakawa made the announcement Tuesday in the Lihikai School cafeteria.

Councilman Mike Victorino’s possible bid for mayor was considered Arakawa’s major obstacle, but Victorino said he hopes instead to be re-elected to the Council’s Wailuku-Waihee-Waikapu seat, the Maui News reported.

Victorino said he would have a good chance but decided the time isn’t right for a divisive campaign.

"Though we don’t agree all the time, I think (he is) doing what I consider a good job for the people of Maui County."

Arakawa won his first four-year term in 2002, defeating incumbent James "Kimo" Apana. He lost to Councilwoman Charmaine Tavares four years later but defeated her in 2010. If he wins next fall, he would be the first incumbent mayor to win re-election since Linda Lingle, who served from 1991 to 1999.

Poelman picked for judgeship

Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald has appointed Lloyd Poelman to a six-year term as a Maui District judge, the state Judiciary announced Wednesday.

Poelman has served as a part-time Maui Family District Court judge since 2005, according to the judiciary.

He has practiced law for 27 years and has been a partner in the Wailuku firm of Poelman and Langa, the announcement said.

Recktenwald selected Poelman from a list of six candidates submitted by the Judicial Selection Commission. The appointment is subject to state Senate confirmation.