Boat salvage set for Wednesday
Pacific Whale Foundation officials were working Tuesday to have their dinner cruise catamaran freed after running aground close to Maui’s shoreline.
The 65-foot vessel became entangled on a buoy near the Lahaina Harbor channel entrance and went aground on the north side of the harbor channel, according to an emergency call made at 3:35 p.m. Monday.
No one was injured in the accident. Passengers were offloaded, and there was no report of a fuel leak, county fire officials said.
Paul Sensano, state boating manager for Maui, said the foundation was able to move the vessel to softer ground and planned to free it during high tide Wednesday morning.
Sensano said the state Boating Division is helping to determine the best way to remove the vessel and minimize damage.
The division said an aquatic biologist was at the scene Tuesday to monitor reef damage.
Efforts to pull the vessel off the reef during high tide Tuesday morning were unsuccessful, Sensano said.
Foundation officials, along with a salvaging company, state officials and the Coast Guard, are discussing the vessel’s fate.
After the vessel is brought to shore, the Boating Division plans to conduct a reef assessment to determine whether the accident caused any damage.
Armed robber steals painkiller in Longs holdup
Maui police are looking for an armed robbery suspect who demanded oxycodone from Longs Drugs pharmacists in Kula.
After entering the drugstore at 8:27 p.m. Monday, the man jumped over a pharmacy counter, police said.
Pointing a black handgun at a pharmacist and others, the man demanded "oxys," police said. Oxycodone is a narcotic analgesic.
A pharmacist did not resist, and the man grabbed an undisclosed amount of oxycodone and ran away.
Police were unable to find the suspect after canvassing the area.
The man is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall, 150 pounds, wearing a dark, hooded long-sleeved sweater with a logo at the top left chest, a brown cap, camouflage shorts, camouflage bandanna around his face, a pair of sunglasses and a pair of dark-colored athletic shoes.
Tantrum causes store damage, police say
Hawaii County police are asking the public for help in identifying an irate customer who allegedly damaged equipment at a Puna store.
The Jan. 20 incident was caught on a surveillance camera. Police said the man damaged a piece of equipment, knocking it to the floor.
He is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighing 150 pounds, in his late 30s with brown eyes and short, dark-brown hair.
He wore a black cap, a multicolored shirt, white shorts and black rubber slippers. Police said he drove away in a silver 2002 four-door Dodge Caliber.
