Question: In the news recently (808ne.ws/2egXRN1) it said that “unprovoked” shark attacks in Hawaii were more likely to occur in October than during other months. What do they mean by unprovoked?
Answer: The International Shark Attack File defines unprovoked attacks as “incidents where an attack on a live human occurs in the shark’s natural habitat with no human provocation of the shark.”
By contrast, the ISAF generally defines provoked attacks as occurring when a human initiates physical contact with a shark, as when a diver is bitten after grabbing a shark. Attacks on spear fishers and people feeding sharks, and bites that occur while a fisher unhooks a shark or removes one from a fishing net, also are generally considered provoked.
Incidents involving sharks and divers in public aquariums or research tanks, shark-inflicted scavenge damage to already dead humans (most often drowning victims), attacks on boats “and other incidents involving provocation by humans occurring in or out of the water are not considered unprovoked attacks,” according to the ISAF, the pre-eminent shark attack database in the world.
The ISAF, owned by the Smithsonian Institution, is housed at the Florida Museum of Natural History, located primarily at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The database contains information on all known shark attacks around the world since the mid-1500s.
Q: What are we supposed to do when we see road rage? I was scared.
A: Call 911 and give the police dispatcher the location of the incident and a description of the driver and his or her vehicle, including the license plate number, if you have it, advises the Honolulu Police Department.
The city has a law against using a mobile phone while driving, but doing so to call 911 in an emergency is an affirmative defense (mitigating the consequences of otherwise illegal conduct).
Here’s what not to do, according to HPD: Don’t engage the hostile driver. Don’t pull over to the side of the road. Don’t get out of your vehicle. Doing so could increase the risk of violence.
Q: If I give up my driver’s license, do I have to get a state ID?
A: No. The Hawaii state identification card serves as a government-issued alternative for people who do not have a driver’s license, but you are not required to have one.
Most adults prefer to have at least one government-issued picture ID because so many transactions in everyday life require presenting a trusted, verifiable identification card. Tasks such as opening a bank account or boarding an airplane come to mind, for example.
Kahala park
The primary baseball field and adjacent area at Kahala Community Park are set to close today for an improvement project scheduled to last about six months, according to a news release from the city.
Although other areas of the popular park are to remain open, the public is advised to avoid the restricted area, which is near the corner of Pueo and Moa streets. Construction work in that portion of the nearly 9-acre park includes removing and replacing the baseball backstops and dugouts; putting in new fencing, sidewalks and landscaping; and planting grass.
Mahalo
I want to send a big mahalo to the care crew of the City and County of Honolulu’s Baker One ambulance: Linda, Kili and Sara. I recently experienced an intolerable episode of pain and needed emergency care. These young women arrived promptly, worked efficiently and professionally and had cheerful dispositions, making me feel comfortable and in good hands. I really appreciated the good care they gave me and want to acknowledge them publicly. — Mahalo, Carol A. Hanlin
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
