Fallen tree closes scenic spot on road
Koloa’s famed "Tree Tunnel" was closed for several hours Friday morning as Kauai County crews removed a fallen tree on Maluhia Road.
Crews were able to reopen the road at about 10 a.m.
Eucalyptus trees, first planted more than 100 years ago, arch over Maluhia Road at the gateway to the Koloa/ Poipu area, forming the scenic "Tree Tunnel," which is a popular tourist attraction.
Blaze torches empty cabins, Quonset hut
Two cabins described as historic and a Quonset hut burned at the Humuula Sheep Station Cabins area off Saddle Road on the windward slopes of Mauna Kea early Friday morning.
Firefighters from the Kaumana station responded to an alarm at 1:03 a.m. and found several structures in flames when they arrived at 1:21 a.m.
They brought the fire under control at 1:35 a.m. and extinguished it at 4:42 a.m.
The cabins and Quonset hut were unoccupied at the time. The cabins were destroyed, and about half of the Quonset hut burned, according to a Hawaii County Fire Department news release.
The cause is under investigation.
The cabins, part of an old sheep ranch, are owned by the Department of Hawaiian Affairs, which hopes to develop the area into an eco-tourism site, according to a 2012 Hawaii Tribune Herald article.
Critical accident shuts down bridge
Honolulu police closed the Haleiwa bridge on Kamehameha Highway for more than two hours Friday morning after a truck struck a pole and critically injured a man.
Police said speed and alcohol may be factors in the 2 a.m. crash near the bridge.
Paramedics took a man in his 50s, who was not wearing a seat belt, to the hospital in critical condition, according to an Emergency Medical Services report.
The man suffered "major head injuries," police said. He was driving a black 2006 Toyota Tacoma north on Kamehameha Highway that crossed the centerline and hit a utility pole on the southbound side of the highway, police said.
Police closed the Anahulu Bridge to investigate. Traffic was rerouted to the Haleiwa Bypass Road, and the bridge reopened by 5 a.m.
Man arrested after housemate is shot
Police arrested a Honaunau man during the investigation into the shooting of the man’s housemate in South Kona on Thursday night.
Police said responding officers found a 52-year-old man shot at his home on the 83-500 block of Highway 11 in Honaunau at about 6:35 p.m. Thursday.
Fire/rescue crews took the shooting victim to the Kona Community Hospital, where he was in critical but stable condition, police said.
The home was shared by several tenants. Police arrested one of them, a 44-year-old man, on suspicion of attempted murder.
Firefighters end up tackling 2 hot spots
Maui firefighters responding to a brush fire caused by fireworks Friday at Maui Lani Parkway were alerted to a second brush fire nearby, officials said.
No damage or injuries were reported in either fire.
Firefighters received the first call just before 11 a.m. and found approximately 3 acres of dry brush burning east of the restaurant at Maui Lani Parkway, fire officials said.
An investigation found fireworks at the scene that were blamed for the fire.
Before the fire was deemed under control at 12:20 p.m., firefighters were alerted to a second, half-acre brush fire at 11:43 a.m. nearby at Mahaolu and Hoomoku streets. The cause of the second fire was still under investigation.
