Neighbor Island briefs
Advertiser Staff and News Services
MAUI
Missing 'opihi picker found dead
MALIKO, Maui — The body of an 'opihi picker missing since Monday was pulled from the ocean yesterday. Police identified him as Wilmar J. Cablay, 33, of Ha'ku, found shortly after noon about 50 yards off the Maliko shore.
BIG ISLAND
No-contest plea in fatal car crash
HILO, Hawai'i — An O'ahu man involved in a fatal car crash while being pursued by police pleaded no contest to manslaughter Tuesday.
Police said Richard Rosario, 21, was driving a stolen car Sept. 7, 2000, when he ran a red light and rammed a sedan at the intersection of Maka'ala Street and Kanoelehua Avenue near Prince Kuhio Plaza. Ellison Sweezey, 31, a community college student and mother of five who was riding in the sedan, suffered fatal injuries.
Rosario will be sentenced April 25 by Circuit Judge Riki May Amano.
Storm brings lightning to Hilo
HILO, Hawai'i — A sudden winter storm struck the eastern side of the Big Island yesterday, bringing lightning strikes and loud thunder claps.
Brief power failures occurred in the morning, and Hawai'i Electric Light Co. reported three afternoon failures affecting 7,420 customers. The longest lasted more than 1 1/2 hours.
Fire investigators were looking into the cause of a Kea'au house fire that may have resulted from a lightning strike. The fire, reported at 6:16 a.m., caused $40,000 damage to a 19th Avenue home.
KAUA'I
Cancer group receives grant
The American Cancer Society program on Kaua'i has received a $5,100 grant from the Elsie H. Wilcox Foundation to support a Breast Health Symposium in October and the Tell A Friend program.
Tell A Friend is an early-detection program intended to encourage at-risk women to get early screenings to detect breast cancer. The program is primarily aimed at women of Hawaiian and Filipino ancestry, who have the same incidence rate of breast cancer as other ethnic groups but higher mortality.
Cancer is the leading cause of death on Kaua'i. Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer found in women on the island.
For more information on Tell A Friend or other American Cancer Society programs, call the Kaua'i unit at (808) 245-2942.
