Hawai'i briefs

Advertiser Staff

Volunteers remove trash from waters

More than 1,000 volunteers scoured Hawai'i's waterways yesterday, removing tons of debris. The "Get the Drift and Bag It" event was part of worldwide efforts sponsored by the Ocean Conservancy.

Volunteers worked at hundreds of sites statewide yesterday as part of the International Coastal Cleanup, billed as the world's largest daylong volunteer marine cleanup. In 2002, some 30,166 pounds of debris was removed from 94 miles of shoreline and waterways in Hawai'i, Ocean Conservancy officials said. The amount of trash picked up yesterday had not been tallied.

"It's amazing to see what people brought back," said Sandra Lacar, who volunteered at Ala Moana Beach Park, noting syringes had been found.

Kapolei man critically hurt

A 31-year-old Kapolei man was critically injured yesterday morning when he lost control of his motorcycle on the Waimalu on-ramp to the H-1 Freeway. Honolulu police said the man was on the westbound freeway, took a sharp turn and crashed. He was not wearing a helmet and suffered head injuries. Investigators said he was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in critical condition. Police said alcohol may have been a factor in the crash but it was not known if the man was speeding.