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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, June 19, 2002

Neighbor Island briefs

Advertiser Staff and News Services

MAUI

Ha'iku home to be inspected

WAILUKU, Maui — Animal control officers will begin weekly inspections tomorrow of the home of a Ha'iku couple charged with animal cruelty for keeping 96 dogs and cats in their three-bedroom house.

At a Wailuku District Court hearing yesterday, Timothy and Marilyn "Jean" Bermudez agreed to the inspections that were requested by Deputy Prosecutor Mark Simonds following reports the couple had acquired a dog and two puppies and were keeping them at their West Lelehuna Place home.

Also at the hearing, Judge Rhonda Loo granted a request by defense attorney David Sereno, representing Jean Bermudez, to postpone arraignment until July 2 to give him additional time to obtain records in the case. The Bermudezes are charged with 85 counts each of cruelty to animals, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.


Alcohol involved in fatal Maui crash

WAILUKU, Maui — A man charged in connection with a crash that killed a retired police officer directing traffic last week on Maui had a blood-alcohol level that exceeded the legal limit, police said.

Bruce Mauvais, 56, of Lahaina, was charged with first-degree negligent homicide in Friday's fatal crash and released after posting $5,000 bail.

Traffic Lt. Charles Hirata declined to say what Mauvais' exact blood-alcohol level was during the crash, but said blood test results showed the level was higher than the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

Antonio Funes, 54, was hired to direct traffic while paving crews worked on the Honoapi'ilani Highway widening project.

Shortly before 3 a.m. Friday, Funes was hit by Mauvais' pickup truck north of the highway junction with North Kihei Road. Funes died at Maui Memorial Medical Center.


BIG ISLAND

Big Island girl dies after van overturns

VOLCANO, Hawai'i — A 17-year-old Puna girl died Monday at The Queen's Medical Center after being injured in a Big Island crash late Saturday night.

The victim was thrown from a van that went out of control near the main entrance to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park at the 219-mile marker on the Hawai'i Belt Road, park rangers said.

Ranger Mardie Lane said two other juveniles were in the car that "hydroplaned, hit an embankment and overturned," during the 11:45 p.m. crash. Neither was seriously injured.


KAUA'I

Fire destroys storage shed

KOLOA, Kaua'i — Firefighters extinguished a blaze Tuesday night that destroyed a storage shed near a home in Koloa.

The fire broke out at 8:08 p.m. at 2720 Ho'onani Road, about 300 feet from the Koloa station, officials said. The shed was used to store blankets and sheets for a motel run by the homeowners, and putting out the fire buried within the piles of fabric complicated the work, officials said.

The fire was extinguished at 9:54 p.m. Total damage to the structure and contents was estimated at $30,000.


State firefighters mop up on Kaua'i

WAIMEA, Kaua'i — State forestry firefighters yesterday checked for hot spots after Monday's brushfire at Koke'e. The blaze burned about a half-acre but took half the day to put out.

The alarm sounded at 11:24 a.m. Monday, but county firefighters had to cut through brush to reach the site near Waimea Canyon at Kumuela Ridge Road and didn't arrive until 12:50 p.m.

Navy and commercial helicopter crews assisted firefighters by dropping water on the blaze throughout the day. An illegal campfire is the suspected cause of the fire.