The year 2001 contained an incident that immediately became a milestone for most people, a moment forever etched in time, spoken of in numerical form of some sort: 9-11, 9-1-1 or Sept. 11th. The brutality of the East Coast terrorist
The year 2001 contained an incident that immediately became a milestone for most people, a moment forever etched in time, spoken of in numerical form of some sort: 9-11, 9-1-1 or Sept. 11th.
The brutality of the East Coast terrorist attacks, a lack of concern for human life (folks from 60 countries died in the World Trade Center alone) and the calculated nature of the blows made this heinous crime the story that’s still on everyone’s mind.
On the other side of the country, Kaua’i and the rest of Hawai’i was forced to weather the unprecedented two-day disruption of all air travel, followed by a subsequent (and continuing) drop in visitor arrivals and its impact on the local and state economy. More than 500 Kaua’i residents either lost their jobs entirely or endured reduced work hours, putting added strain on emergency relief agencies.
At the height of an anthrax scare created by deliveries on the mainland of mail containing the deadly chemical, the Kaua’i County Police and Fire departments received a glut of calls about whiter power of dubious origin on the island, forcing evacuations and overloading the response time and manpower of government agencies. The good news: All of the calls were false alarms.
Let’s make a deal (or not)
In business, Citizens Communications still owns Kaua’i Electric, despite continuing efforts by a cooperative to buy it.
Steve Case, the man behind communications giant AOL Time Warner, bought Amfac Sugar Kauai’s former Lihu’e Plantation land in July. Over 18,000 acres, for around $26 million, made the man with family ties to Kauai the island’s second-largest private landowner, with over 40,000 acres (about 16 percent of the island).
Another new Kaua’i landowner in 2001 was Ernest Moody of Las Vegas, Nev., who bought several hundred acres of the Hanamaulu Bay shoreline and plans a golf course and residential subdivision.
The merger of Wilcox Health System (the hospital and Kaua’i Medical Clinic) with Kapiolani Health and Straub Clinic and Hospital, the latter pair on Oahu, was done to keep all three financially viable and increase availability of new specialists for treatment on Kaua’i.
The parent company of two cruise ships calling weekly on Nawiliwili Harbor went bankrupt. But a new Norwegian Cruise Line vessel bringing just as many people to the island on a weekly basis (2,200 passengers) began weekly service in December.
The death of interisland airline competition came as a shock in December, when Aloha Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines announced plans for a merger. As important a lifeline to the island as the interisland barges are for bringing everything we eat and wear and drive to the island, airplanes are really the only one way on and off this island.
Progress reports
A consultant’s report done 18 months ago, recommending a site for a new county landfill wasn’t, acted upon by county officials. The recruitment of a vendor to deliver a long-term, solid-waste solution stopped, with the project put on the way-back burner.
The proposed Robinson family resort at Pakala, known as Kapalawai and including the historic family mansion and 250 cabins, is headed for completion after getting County Council approval in December. The final permit will be sought early in 2002.
Kikiaola Land Co. announced plans to expand Waimea Plantation Cottages from 50 cottages to a mix of nearly 250 resort units, including a three-story hotel and some two-story cottages.
A planned expansion of Burns Field (Port Allen Airport) to allow up to four helicopter companies is still pending.
The Koloa bypass road, beset by delays and problems with the work, finally opened to the motoring public.
In a communitywide project reminiscent of the Kamalani Playground undertaking, volunteers built Kamalani Kai, a wooden pedestrian bridge and play structure near Lydgate Park. Work went on day and night.
Gone but not forgotten
Kauai’s most famous international resident but unknown to many Kauaians, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, or Gurudeva, died in November. Obituaries for the Hindu spiritual leader and winner of a high-profile United Nations award appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and many international newspapers.
Butch Kekahu, a Native Hawaiian rights activist who led Aloha March demonstrations in Washington, D.C. and Boston, Mass., died two days after Christmas.
Tales from local government
Kaua’i County Mayor Maryanne Kusaka’s aides leased her a new 2001 sedan from a Lihue car dealer without telling the County Council. Not only did she have to return the new vehicle and pay the difference out of her own pocket, council members voted to return to a line-item budget to oversee the Kusaka administration’s financial dealings more closely.
The Donkey Beach issue generated intense and interminable debate about controversial Colorado developer Tom McCloskey’s attempts to “give” the beach and 50 surrounding acres of beachfront property to the county.
George Freitas, police chief since 1995, was suspended in August and is still being investigated by the county Police Commission for alleged official wrongdoing. Freitas sued the county, claiming he has been deprived of his civil rights. He was accused of hindering an investigation of a police officer and a host of relatively minor personnel offenses.
The return of an old nemesis, Dengue fever — an infectious virus not seen in Hawai’i since it killed three people in 1943 — buzzed the populace here and statewide. Maui was the hardest hit island, but Kauai registered four confirmed cases. A minor panic ensued and many mosquitos paid the ultimate price: Death by spraying.
County Council members Ron Kouchi and Bryan Baptiste got an early start on 2002’s election by declaring their candidacies for mayor. Expect more candidates to line up for that job and the council seats.
Dishonorable mention
The West Side killer case remained unsolved. Whoever brutally murdered two women at isolated West Side locations in 2000 and stabbed, raped and left for dead a third woman hasn’t been brought to justice.
Two teenagers attacked a Polihale campsite and tried to burn the tents of campers in May because, according to authorities, the victims were homosexuals. Eamonn de Carolan and Orien Macomber are awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to felonies connected with the incident.
A California man, Brent “Kerby” Kerr, was murdered outside his van parked at Nawiliwili in October. The alleged killer, Will McCrory, also of California, was arrested within two days. Both men were living at the beach at the time of the murder.
Christine Robles, 21, of Koloa, was charged with murder after her newborn son was found inside a rice bag in the trash at her parents’ home in late April. She is awaiting trial.
Gerard Silva, said to be depressed, approached police headquarters in Lihue in March, armed with a loaded rifle and threatening to kill officers. Some of them wrestled him to the ground and disarmed him. No one was injured, and Silva is set for trial in March 2002.
Nelson Gabriel, a police officer, was charged with sexually assaulting his pre-teen stepdaughter for years. No verdict has been rendered.
Matthew Blankswade, 22, who pleaded guilty to killing his ex-girlfriend’s father, Jeff Brisbois, in 2000 in Wainiha, was sentenced to almost 40 years in prison.
Man and nature
The 246-foot wing span Helios unmanned aircraft, a NASA project, set a new world altitude record for propeller-driven flight on Aug. 13. The historic flight started at Pacific Missile Range Facility.
In July, a state proposal to increase the number of tour boat passengers to the Na Pali Coast, one of Hawaii’s top visitor attractions, sparked stiff public opposition. Critics say the increase will marine life and resources.
Local and mainland critics descended upon a Kauai County Board of Water Supply meeting in May to demand that the county scrap any plan to flouridate the island’s public water system. They said the treatment will pollute the water and pose health risks. Supporters of fluoride say otherwise.
Farmers worked with state agriculture officials to fight the bungy top virus, which has threatened the statewide banana indsustry.
