A shade tree in the parking lot of Papaikou Gym appears to be taking a bite out of a guardrail that was installed to close for comfort. (Photo special to Hawaii 24/7 by Tim Wright)

Well, we’re stumped, so we’re branching out and looking for clever captions. Photographer Tim Wright says he thinks the tree just needed some iron in its diet.

Got a better idea? Just leaf your comments below …

iPhone version of video

Photography by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7

Cherry blossoms blooming at Waimea's Church Row Park.

The Honokaa High School Jazz Band entertains the crowd at Parker Ranch Center.

Chef Toshi Kobayashi (left) from Imari Restaurant at the Hilton Waikoloa puts on a cooking demonstration at Kamuela Hongwanji.

Artwork by Zoe Johnson on display. Johnson demonstrated 'throwing' clay on a potter's wheel.

The festival celebrates the blooming of Church Row Park’s historic cherry trees and the Japanese tradition of viewing them – hanami – and to welcome the arrival of Spring. Get a free 2010 Cherry Blossom Calendar here.

An adult humpback whale breaches in waters off Kekaha Kai State Park Sunday (Jan 10).

Photography by Michael Darden | Special to Hawaii 24/7

Photography by Rick Ogata | Special to Hawaii 24/7

The Hilo Vikings and the Waiakea Warriors met Friday (Jan 8) in front of a packed gymnasium for their first match-up of the 2010 season. Both teams played hard, countering strong offense with good defense. The crowd was really into the game as well as they cheered on their team.

Hilo’s high scorers were Scotty Wong with 18 points and Dakota Allen with 12. Chan Spikes and Dylan Guthier each had 10 points. Waiakea’s high scorers were Matt Libao with 16 points, Cameron Ita with 12, and Chris Mattos with 10.

Hilo    - 14 14 15 19 - 62
Waiakea - 12 19 17 15 - 63

Video by David Corrigan | Big Island Video News

A sign alerts visitors to poor air quality at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park entrance. (Hawaii 24/7 photo by Karin Stanton)

Karin Stanton | Hawaii 24/7 Contributing Editor

It’s just accepted that Kilauea Volcano is doing it’s thing. It’s been erupting continuously since Jan. 3, 1983 and many Big Island residents pay Pele no mind as she and they go about their business.

Volcanoes, especially active ones, however, do demand attention.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando. (Hawaii 24/7 photo by Karin Stanton)

To mark the anniversary of the eruption and the need to be aware of all its glory and hazards, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Obeservatory,  Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, county Civil Defense Agency and the University of Hawaii at Hilo have declared January “Volcano Awareness Month.”

‘Who could not be aware of it?’

At Saturday’s kick off event, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist and public information office Janet Babb asked that very question.

For most residents, visitors and volcanology buffs, it’s certainly nothing new. But officials say being aware, educated and prepared is a necessity.

Saturday underscored the need as the usual trade winds dropped, leaving Halemaumau’s belching gases to sit over Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and fouling the air to dangerous levels. Rangers sported full masks and signs urged visitors to stay in their cars.

The morning presentation was moved from the Halemaumau overlook inside to prevent choking media representatives. (Yes, please, insert your own joke here.)

The month-long outreach program is designed to ensure everyone has the information they need to stay safe, while respecting the culture and history of the volcano, enjoying nature’s awesome display of raw power and energy, and advancing the science and technology of volcanology.

Civil Defense Agency Administrator Quince Mento

Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando said the NPS recognizes that Kilauea and Mauna Loa are incredible resources, and works with the U.S. Geological Survey scientists “who have their finger on the pulse and constantly monitor these mighty mountains.”

They share with park visitors the curiosity, awe and respect for the mountains.

“We encourage them to become aware through their own perceptions and experiences – on trails that descend into craters and lava tubes, loop around spatter ramparts and steam vents, and cross pahoehoe and aa flows dotted with stands of lava trees,” she said.

Visitors – whether they are life-long Big Island residents or vacationers from around the globe – also are encouraged to become aware of hazards and dangers that pool beneath the surface of the island.

“Hawaii basically is volcanoes and it’s important for people to realize that,” HVO Scientist-in-charge Jim Kauahikaua said. “Our challenge is in conveying information.”

Civil Defense Agency administrator Qiunce Mento said volcanoes present real and changing hazards. While Civil Defense is charged with helping keep people safe when hazards become untenable, Mento said personal responsibility is key.

For example, he said, everyone should know how to react to the island’s most common threats.

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Scientist-in-Charge Jim Kauahikaua

“You should know when the ground shakes, maybe it’s time to get under something so things don’t fall on you. When the ground shakes a lot and you’re near the shore, maybe it’s time to head inland,” he said. “When the vog is heavy, maybe it’s time to get inside or even to leave the area. This knowledge ultimately will be your best protection.”

Upgrading the seismic system

Kauahikaua said $3.3 million in federal stimulus money will be used to fundamentally upgrade the observatory’s monitoring network. The upgrades are expected to last more than 18 months and create a handful of temporary jobs.

The seismographic network currently includes more than 60 sites that collect data continuously and shoot it back to the observatory in real-time, he said. Although some GPS and Web cams are operational, Kauahikaua said, it’s “fairly old technology.”

Dated analog equipment will be replaced with digital technology, he said.

“While the networks are working very well, the upgrade will allow us to receive more useful information from each monitored location and make the networks more expandable,” he said. “Most of our seismic networks were installed in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s so the upgrade to 21st century standards will be dramatic.”

The next generation

A second initiative this year involves a formal cooperative relationship with the School of Ocean and Earth Sciences and Technology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Kauahikaua said the partnership should enhance volcano research in Hawaii, as well as help train the next generation of volcano scientists.

In addition to offering internships to college students from around the globe, Kauahikaua said he hopes the relationship with UH will encourage budding Big Island scientists.

“We have found that local kids are either not interested at all in science or tend to want to go into astronomy. So we’re basically playing catch up,” he said. “We’re trying to put it on the radar. With this cooperative relationship, we hope to create a better field for volcanologists. And there is a lot of room for other technology specialists.”

Culture and history

Keola Awong, the park’s cultural anthropologist, said today’s island residents should have the same understanding and respect of the volcano as those in ancient times had for Pele.

“Pele is here and she will remain here,” Awong said. “And it’s very important for us to know this. She is much more than (the legend of) an old lady dressed in white walking on the side of the road late at night or a white dog that you might see just before an eruption.”

The legend and lore of Pele tells its own story, Awong said. The ancient chants still have great meaning and we can learn the same lessons from them.

“Pele is volcanism. She is very unpredictable,” she said. “And that’s the kind of respect that we have to show for her.”

Halemaumau vents steam across Kilauea Iki in January 2010. (Hawaii 24/7 photo by Karin Stanton)

Dates and milestones

Volcano Awareness Month marks the 50th anniversary of the 1960 eruption that leveled Kapoho. The 27th birthday of Kilauea’s current eruption along the East Rift Zone was Jan. 3.

This year also marks the 60th anniversary of the 1950 Mauna Loa episode and the 20th anniversary of Kalapana’s obliteration.

Since the eruption began in 1983, lava flows have buried at least 45 square miles of the volcano and have added more than 500 acres of new land to the island.

Lava along the coast is 33 to 115 feet deep. Kalapana was smothered under 50 feet of lava in the 1989 flow.

Nearly 9 miles of coastal highway has been covered and at least 189 structures have been engulfed.

— Find out more:

hvo.wr.usgs.gov

www.nps.gov/havo

www.uhh.hawaii.edu/~csav

Photography by Rick Ogata | Special to Hawaii 24/7

MEDIA RELEASE

The University of Hawaii at Hilo beat Gustavus Adolphus College 69-50 to end their pre-conference season with a 4-game winning streak.

Both the Vulcans and Golden Gusties are 6-4.

Justin Smith led the Vulcans with a 15-point, 10-rebound performance. Bryan Ngo added 14 points and Andrew Gipson had 10.

“I was very scared coming into this game as they are a very good team,” UHH head coach Jeff Law said. “They out-rebounded us but we had only seven turnovers and shot pretty well.

“As a group we played very good defense in the first half and carried it over into the second half. I just thought we played a good team game and we played physical.”

The Vulcans dished out 12 assists and recorded nine steals.

Pacific West Conference play opens on the road for the Vulcans as head to the Bay Area to face Academy of Art University (January 5), Notre Dame de Namur University (January 7) and Dominican University (January 9).

Gustavus Adolphus College vs University of Hawaii at Hilo
12/30/09 7:30 pm at Hilo, HI

*--------------------------------------------*
VISITORS: Gustavus Adolphus College 6-4
                        TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
11 Schmidtknecht, Dan.. *  0-5    0-3    2-2    3  2  5   3   2  3  3  0  1  20
21 Van Sickle, Jesse... *  2-8    0-2    2-2    0  1  1   0   6  1  2  0  0  22
23 Wirtjes, Phil....... *  2-2    1-1    0-2    1  1  2   1   5  2  4  0  0  24
32 McPartland, Ryan.... *  2-4    0-1    0-1    1  6  7   1   4  0  3  0  0  21
54 Paulson, Sam........ *  2-5    0-0    2-4    2  3  5   3   6  0  0  0  0  18
03 Grey, Tyler.........    0-2    0-2    0-0    1  0  1   1   0  0  1  0  0  14
04 Anderson, Seth......    1-5    0-1    1-2    1  1  2   4   3  1  2  0  1  16
10 Moore, Ty...........    2-2    2-2    0-0    0  0  0   0   6  0  0  0  0   5
12 Beckstrand, Peder...    0-2    0-2    0-0    1  0  1   0   0  2  0  0  0   6
20 Biewen, Ben.........    1-1    0-0    2-2    0  1  1   0   4  0  0  0  0  13
33 Michel, Adam........    1-5    0-1    2-2    1  2  3   0   4  0  1  0  0  13
34 Hill, James.........    1-2    0-1    0-0    0  0  0   0   2  0  1  0  0   5
40 Sallstrom, Reed.....    0-1    0-0    3-4    2  1  3   0   3  0  0  1  0   4
42 Crowder, Mychal.....    1-2    0-0    1-2    1  1  2   0   3  0  0  0  0   7
50 Blacklock, Paul.....    1-2    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   1   2  0  1  0  0  12
 TEAM................                           1  2  3
 Totals..............     16-48   3-16  15-23  16 21 37  14  50  9 18  1  2 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half:  9-18 50.0%   2nd Half:  7-30 23.3%   Game: 33.3%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  1-5  20.0%   2nd Half:  2-11 18.2%   Game: 18.8%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  3-7  42.9%   2nd Half: 12-16 75.0%   Game: 65.2%    2

--------------------------------------------
HOME TEAM: University of Hawaii at Hilo 6-4
                        TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
01 Gipson, Andrew...... *  4-5    0-0    2-4    0  3  3   3  10  0  1  0  0  20
12 Ngo, Bryan.......... *  6-9    0-0    2-2    0  0  0   1  14  2  1  0  4  29
21 Smith, Justin....... *  7-9    0-0    1-2    2  8 10   3  15  1  1  1  2  24
22 Shipman, Lavell..... *  3-5    0-0    1-2    3  1  4   1   7  4  1  1  2  26
32 Wilde, Zachary...... *  3-7    0-1    1-2    1  4  5   1   7  4  1  0  0  29
02 Kanno, Nick.........    0-1    0-1    0-0    1  0  1   1   0  0  0  0  0   3
03 Bruce, Kevin........    2-5    1-2    1-2    0  1  1   1   6  1  2  0  0  25
13 Samuel, James.......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   2
14 Schicker, Steve.....    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0   7
15 Sanekane, Vince.....    2-3    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   2   4  0  0  0  1  10
33 Lefebvre, Jimmy.....    0-3    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   2   0  0  0  0  0   9
40 James, Brandon......    3-8    0-1    0-0    0  1  1   2   6  0  0  1  0  16
 TEAM................                           1  3  4
 Totals..............     30-55   1-5    8-14   8 22 30  18  69 12  7  3  9 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 14-25 56.0%   2nd Half: 16-30 53.3%   Game: 54.5%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  0-2   0.0%   2nd Half:  1-3  33.3%   Game: 20.0%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  5-8  62.5%   2nd Half:  3-6  50.0%   Game: 57.1%    2
--------------------------------------------
Officials: Mason Souza, Patrick Santiago, Victor McDaniel
Technical fouls: Gustavus Adolphus College-None. University of Hawaii at
Hilo-TEAM.
Attendance: 351
Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
Gustavus Adolphus College.....   22   28  -   50
University of Hawaii at Hilo..   33   36  -   69

Visitors to Donkey Mill Art Center in Holualoa took turns with a huge wooden mallet to pound steamed rice into sticky dough for rice cakes. Photographs by Baron Sekiya

By Karen A. Iwamoto
Hawaii 24/7 correspondent

The hot, sticky rice dough is quickly shaped into rice cakes making mochi.

Mochi, that sweet, sticky rice treat sought by cultists of Two Ladies Kitchen in Hilo, and available in the freezer section of your grocery store via the Mikawaya Mochi Ice Cream company, has a more humble history as a traditional New Year’s food.

Traditional mochi is made from an especially glutinous short-grained rice that is first soaked in water for 24 hours then steamed over an open fire for an additional hour. From there, it makes its way to a wooden usu (large Japanese mortar, usually made of wood or stone) where it is pounded by someone weilding a kine (large wooden mallet that serves as pestle to the usu). The grains of rice are mashed to a sticky-smooth doughlike consistency, then transferred to a long wooden table where small chunks are pinched off and molded into round, palm-sized, flat-bottomed rice cakes.

The steamed sweet rice is kneaded in an usu before being pounded with mallets.

No fancy chocolate fillings here. No ice cream or fresh strawbery fillings either. Nor will you find the fancy mochi confections molded into intricate shapes. Just a plain white mochi ready for the grill or a pot of ozoni (traditional Japanese New Year’s soup).

This is the way the Holualoa Foundation for Arts and Culture has been making its New Year’s mochi for the past 10 years. (The usu used has been in Holualoa Foundation member Kris Kaneko’s family for three generations.) But the plainess has a purpose.

“It’s symbolic. Mochi is sticky and heavy, representing strength and energy (for the new year),” explained Setsuko Morinoue, one of the founders of the Holualoa Foundation for Arts & Culture. “And it’s white. Anything white is purified, represents purity.”

Morinoue, who married a Big Islander but hails from a town just south of Tokyo, remembers rolling the mochi dough onto a flat surface and cutting it into neat rectangles.

“There are two different ways of making mochi,” she explained. “Tokyo versus kansai. Kansai is southern Japan. In Tokyo, the mochi is not round. Round is just for the shogun (Japanese military commander). In kansai, they make the mochi round.”

Rice is steamed over an open fire at Donkey Mill Art Center.

Also, Morinoue said, in Tokyo the New Year’s mochi tends to be plain and ungarnished, while in the kansai region the people tend to garnish with sweet adzuki beans or other fillings. In a nod to that tradtion, members of the Holualoa Foundation for Arts & Culture set out bowls of sweet adzuki bean paste, natto (fermented soy beans) and daikon so eaters could garnish their mochi should they so choose.

To find out more about the Holualoa Foundation for Arts and Culture, please visit the Donkey Mill Art Center Web site at: www.donkeymillartcenter.org

Tiare and Celia Ball get a lesson from Hiroki Morinoue, right, in the art of building a kadomatsu which is a Japanese New Year decoration made of bamboo.

Visitors to Donkey Mill Art Center lend a hand at shaping mochi rice cakes.

One of President Obama's back-up planes at Hilo International Aiport Tursday (Dec 24) as he visits Oahu on vacation. (Photography by Tim Wright, Special to Hawaii 24/7)

The First Family arrived Christmas Eve in Honolulu for a holiday break. The family is expected to stay 10 days at a private Kailua home.

Security is tight – a larger than typical no-fly zone is in place following a threat to family members and no casually loitering on the beach just to snap photos!

Last year, when Barack Obama was ‘just’ the president elect, seems to have been something of a dry run for security details.

Meanwhile, First Dog Bo is reportedly staying home.  However, one of the president’s back-up planes touched down in Hilo.

And it is an impressive sight.

iPhone version of video

Hawaii Tribune-Herald employees wave signs in front of their newspaper building on Kinoole Street Monday morning (Dec 21) on the last day of their contract with the paper. Photography by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7.

Union employees of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald daily newspaper staged an informational picket in front of their office building on Kinoole Street in Hilo Monday (Dec 21). The employees waved signs and passed out flyers to the public informing them of the newspaper’s termination of their contract.

The newspaper’s contract with the Hawaii Newspaper Guild, which represents editorial and advertising employees, was cancelled and Monday was the last day of the contract. The Newspaper Guild members are asking subscribers to sign pledge cards to cancel subscriptions should negotiations for a new contract fail.

Phone calls and emails to Hawaii Tribune-Herald publisher Ted Dixon and Stephens Media attorney Michael Zinser have not been retuned to Hawaii 24/7 for comment.

Stephens Media is the owner of several Big Island publications: The Hawaii Tribune-Herald, West Hawaii Today, North Hawaii News, Big Island Weekly, Westside Weekly, 808Classifieds, Kamaaina Shopper and several cruise ship and home/real estate publications. Stephens Media is also partnered in operating Hawaii.com on the internet and KHHB-LP, a television station on the Big Island.

For more information see:

Stephens Media (owner of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald)

Hawaii Tribune-Herald

Hawaii Tribune-Herald Union News

Union employees of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald spent staged an informational picket in front of their Hilo office.

UPDATED MEDIA RELEASE (12/18/09)

A sign and lockbox for people buying produce at Daniel Heidt's home. Photography by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7.

An autopsy performed Friday (December 18) has determined that Daniel Heidt died of a gunshot wound to the upper torso. Toxicology results are pending.

Heidt was shot Wednesday (December 16) during a struggle for his handgun after a standoff in lower Puna.

Police ask that anyone with information on this incident call Lieutenant Mitch Kanehailua 961-2252 or the Police Department’s non-emergency line at 935-3311.

Police are particularly interested in speaking to any motorist who drove past the Kehena Beach Estates subdivision on Highway 137 between 2 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. on December 16.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.

Scene of the shooting in Kehena Beach Estates subdivision. Photographs by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7

UPDATED: 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 17

Big Island police have identified the man who was shot Wednesday following a standoff with police as 60-year-old Daniel Heidt of Kehena.

An investigation revealed Heidt was the owner of the house he barricaded himself inside and was home alone during the incident.

Police reported Heidt discharged a firearm numerous times and threatened police with a gun, following a standoff of nearly 10 hours.

Puna patrol officers initially responded to a 2:52 a.m. report Wednesday of shots being fired from within a home in the Kehena Beach Estates subdivision in lower Puna. As they approached the house, responding officers confirmed numerous additional shots being fired. They secured the perimeter of the property, where the man had barricaded himself inside the house.

The Police Department’s Special Response Team (SRT) was notified at 4 a.m. and took over the scene at 6:51 a.m.

Shortly after 8 a.m., Highway 137 was closed in both directions between the 19- and 20-mile markers. To ensure the safety of innocent bystanders and neighbors, police evacuated the immediate area. Because gunshots were still being fired from inside the house, some civilians were taken to safety in the SRT’s armored “Bearcat” vehicle. Highway 137 remained closed until nearly 4 p.m.

The SRT’s Crisis Negotiations Team began negotiating with the barricaded man but were unable to maintain a dialogue because of his unwillingness to participate. Throughout the incident, shots continued to be heard from inside.

Shortly after 1 p.m., the barricaded man exited the house brandishing a machete. As officers attempted to get him to peacefully surrender, he pulled out a concealed firearm. During a struggle for control of the weapon, shots were fired, including one from the man’s gun. Specific details are still under investigation.

Emergency response personnel at the scene treated the man for injuries sustained in the shooting. He died a short time later.

Police recovered the machete and a .22 caliber revolver.

An autopsy has been scheduled for Friday (Dec. 18) to determine the exact cause of death.

Detectives from the Area I Criminal Investigations Section are continuing criminal investigations into the gunman’s actions and the officers’ response. In addition, the Internal Affairs Division is conducting an administrative investigation.

As is standard with any police-involved shooting, the officers directly involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave.

“While I am saddened by the loss of human life,” Chief Harry Kubojiri said, “preliminary reports indicate that the officers involved were justified in their actions and that they acted reasonably given the circumstances.”

Police block roads in Kehena Beach Estates subdivision near the scene of a shooting Wednesday (Dec 16).

A 60-year-old Puna man who discharged a firearm numerous times and threatened police with a gun was shot and killed Wednesday (Dec. 16) following a standoff of nearly 10 hours.

Puna patrol officers initially responded to a 2:52 a.m. report of shots being fired from within a home in the Kehena Beach Estates subdivision in lower Puna.

As they approached the house, responding officers confirmed numerous additional shots being fired. They secured the perimeter of the property.

The Police Department’s Special Response Team (SRT) was notified at 4 a.m. and took over the scene at 6:51 a.m.

Shortly after 8 a.m., Highway 137 was closed between the 19- and 20-mile markers and residents were evacuated.

As part of the SRT response, the Crisis Negotiations Team began talking with the man, who had barricaded himself inside the house.

Shortly after 1 p.m., the man exited the house. A struggle ensued, at which point the man was shot. Details of the incident are still being investigated.

Signs at the home of a Puna man killed Wednesday afternoon (Dec 16).

Emergency response personnel at the scene treated the man for injuries sustained in the shooting. He died a short time later.

Police are withholding the man’s name pending notification of his family.

Chief Harry Kubojiri said although this is an unfortunate incident, he is grateful no neighbors or emergency responders were seriously injured.

As is standard practice in any police-involved shooting, the department’s Area I Criminal Investigations Section will conduct a investigation into the shooting and the Internal Affairs Division will conduct an administrative investigation.