O'ahu briefs
Advertiser Staff and News Services
HONOLULU
Lagoon may be contaminated
State environmental officials yesterday began testing samples from Ke'ehi Lagoon for contamination after about 150,000 gallons of raw sewage entered the water.
Warning signs also have been posted at the lagoon by the mouth of Kalihi Stream, where the sewage seeped in from, authorities said.
The discharge occurred around 6:15 p.m. Monday, when a 36-inch main from the Kamehameha Highway Wastewater Pump Station ruptured and spilled about 330,000 gallons of sewage before it was contained around 8 p.m., said Craig Nishimura, an assistant division chief with the state Department of Environmental Services.
State seeks bids for water sports
The state is soliciting bids for permits that would allow businesses to operate commercial water-sports activities in designated areas.
The Department of Land and Natural Resources will hold sealed-bid auctions for five jet-propelled watercraft permits and one parasailing permit for O'ahu.
An informational meeting will be at 9 a.m. tomorrow at the Keehi Small Boat Harbor conference room.
Prospective bidders must submit written notes of their intentions to bid and completed permit questionnaires to O'ahu district boating manager Steve Thompson by 4:30 p.m. Aug. 8. Send notes and questionnaires to 333 Queen St., room 300. The deadline to submit bids is Aug. 13.
The questionnaire is available on the state Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation Web site. For more details, call 587-1973.
Child-abduction prevention outlined
Authorities yesterday offered safety tips for parents and children following a wave of high-profile abductions and missing-persons cases on the Mainland.
Police said no child abductions have been reported recently in Honolulu, but said there have been a few reports of "near abductions" where children have eluded strangers trying to lure them into their cars, said homicide Lt. Bill Kato, who commands department's missing-persons detail.
According to police and the Hawai'i State Clearinghouse on Missing Children, children should: tell parents of their plans for the day, remember their parents' work telephone number, remember their home address and telephone number, play with a friend or sibling, scream for "help" when trouble arises to alert bystanders, practice making collect telephone calls in case of an emergency and refuse car rides from strangers.
For more child safety tips visit the Hawai'i State Clearinghouse on Missing Children online.
