Members of the Elks Club this morning surprised two burglars who managed only to grab some sound equipment from a manager's office before they fled.

Police arrested one of the suspects nearby the Honolulu lodge who broke into a house on the 3000 block of Kalakaua Avenue in an attempt to hide.

Despite a ground and air search of the area, the second burglar remains at large, Waikiki police said.

The break-in occurred at about 6:10 a.m. A club spokesman said the burglars removed louvers from a kitchen window to enter the building, 2933 Kalakaua Ave, and fled when they were confronted by club members.

Police probe shooting death

Police this morning said they are following up on leads called in after a drive-by shooting late Wednesday but so far have not closed in on a suspect in the murder case.

Homicide Lt. Bill Kato said some of the information being checked comes from chronic drug offenders who knew the victim, Earl Hirakawa, 40, who died early yesterday after he was shot near the Vineyard Boulevard-'Aala Street intersection.

Hirakawa, who lived in Pearl City, had a record of 81 arrests, mostly for drug offenses and property crimes, Kato said.

Kato said police canvassed the crime scene and surrounding areas last night but were unable to find more witnesses. The shooter's car, a light-colored compact model, had drawn abreast of Hirakawa's 1989 Honda Prelude when witnesses heard a shot. Hirakawa then crashed into a tree and was found with a gunshot wound in his head. He was taken to The Queen's Medical Center, where he died at 2:07 a.m.

Fire damages 'Aiea home

Fire caused $50,000 damage to an 'Aiea home this morning, including what firefighters had to do to the roof to gain access to the blaze.

Fire Capt. Richard Soo said three companies responded to the 7:38 a.m. fire at 98-864 Ka'amilo St., a few blocks from the 'Aiea fire station.

The fire was under control at 7:41 a.m. but not extinguished until 8:30 a.m. Because of a false ceiling in the house, Soo said, firefighters had to break through the roof to douse the roofing beams.

Damage to the building contents was estimated at $10,000. Fire investigators had not determined a cause this morning, but Soo said the house had been cut off from electrical power.

Pilot safe after landing scare

A single-engine plane landed safely this morning at the Kalaeloa airport after a scare with failed landing gear.

The Federal Aviation Administration was notified at 8:42 a.m. when a pilot signaled he was in distress during touch-and-go practice at the general aviation airport, said FAA spokesperson Tweet Coleman.

During one of his landings, Coleman said, the pilot discovered that the landing gear on the Yak aircraft had collapsed.

The pilot, the lone occupant of the plane, managed to land safely.

Father, son jailed in fight

A father and son were arrested in Nanakuli last night after exchanging blows and threats with a baseball bat and a fishing spear.

The father, 46, and the son, 22, face charges of second-degree assault and terroristic threatening in the incident, which happened at 7:30 p.m. on Wa'apuhi Street.