Disaster declared after rain, flood Disaster declared after rain, flood ADVERTISING LIHUE, Kauai (AP) — Hawaii’s governor declared a disaster for two islands on Tuesday after three days of relentless rains caused flooding and a sewage spill on Kauai, where
Disaster declared after rain, flood
LIHUE, Kauai (AP) — Hawaii’s governor declared a disaster for two islands on Tuesday after three days of relentless rains caused flooding and a sewage spill on Kauai, where officials were dealing with tree-blocked roads, closed schools and dangerous surf.
Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s declaration includes Oahu, where Honolulu is located. A brown water advisory was issued on the island after two manholes overflowed and wastewater flowed into the ocean. There were also warnings of possible hail, lightning, rockslides and water-clogged roads.
Kauai schoolchildren were kept home Tuesday. A middle school was functioning as an emergency shelter, where 33 people spent the night Monday. The Hawaii chapter of the Red Cross said more than 50 others spent the night at three other shelters.
State workers in Honolulu on Tuesday continued to remove floating trash from the debris trap at the entrance to the Ala Wai small boat harbor. Cleanup began Monday after the weekend rains washed large amounts of trash into the Ala Wai canal.
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch for Kauai, Niihau and Oahu, as well as the islands of Lanai, Maui and Molokai.
Ritz hotel on Lehman sale list
NEW YORK (AP) — The Ritz-Carlton Kapalua hotel in Hawaii, a luxury ski resort in the Rockies and a Manhattan boutique hotel are among the last holdings of Lehman Brothers, the investment house whose spectacular bust triggered the worst of the 2008 financial crisis.
The bank said Tuesday that it will begin unloading its stakes in those properties in April as it prepares to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and finally meet its end.
Lehman’s $639 billion bankruptcy remains the largest in U.S. history. It went under on Sept. 15, 2008, the same week that the government rescued AIG and the $700 billion bailout for major banks was conceived.
The bankruptcy marked the demise of a company that had survived the Civil War and the Depression.
The company says it stands to raise $35 billion more by selling the rest of its assets. Among them are the 404-room Ritz Carlton in Hawaii and the Moonlight Basin resort in Montana, a luxurious ski, golf and spa resort.
“These items capture the euphoria of the times when banks got swept up in the speculative bubble,” said Bert Ely, president of Ely & Co., a banking consulting firm.
Panel amends House maps
HONOLULU (AP) — The state Reapportionment Commission has unveiled new House district boundary lines that pit seven pairs of incumbents against each other.
The district lines were redrawn to address criticism that the previous maps were favorable to current House leadership.
The new maps make some changes to boundaries, but keep the same number of incumbents in the same district.
Under the new maps, six pairs of House members and two Senators will have to run against each other if they seek reelection.
