Kauai County News

In one of the largest legal settlements in Hawaii in recent years, the families of seven people killed in the Kaloko Dam tragedy and several Kauai property owners will receive $25 million in an out-of court settlement, The Advertiser has learned.

LIHUE - The Kauai Aging and Disability Resource Center has launched a Web site, the county said today.

Monetary settlements have ended lawsuits stemming from the deadly 2006 Kauai dam breach but the amounts are being kept confidential.

Terms of the global settlement were not released. The suits were filed by the families of the victims and property owners against the state, as well as other landowners in and around the dam, including Kauai County and James Pflueger.

A 21-year-old Kalaheo, Kauai, man was found dead yesterday morning after a car plunged 40 feet into a ravine in mao.

The deadline for Kauai County residents to apply for the 2010 Sewer Credit Program is Dec.

Kauai County officials said they are considering charging a fee for residential trash pickup.

Republican Charles Djou has raised more than $60,000 in the third quarter of this year in his bid for a U.S. House seat, outpacing Democrat Ed Case in campaign contributions.

LIHUE - A land deal years in the making came to fruition yesterday when the Kauai County Council unanimously approved a plan that will secure 138 oceanfront acres on the Ninini Coastline near Lihue Airport for public use in perpetuity.

Kauai County officials reopened all of Poipu Beach after closing a portion on Sunday after a shark was spotted in the area.

A 22-year-old man was critically injured Monday after falling from the top of a 40-foot tree in Princeville, Kauai County officials said.

As all Hawaii counties soon may ban hand-held cellular phones while driving, the Legislature should make the prohibition uniform in its upcoming session.

The Kauai County Department of Parks and Recreation has closed Haena Beach Park in preparation for the construction of a new comfort station, the Garden Island newspaper reported.

The Honolulu Symphony will perform a musical tribute to Ellen Yasuko Masaki at 7:30 p.m. Oct.

Two men who ran auto parts businesses were convicted last month of failing to file general excise tax returns, and their companies were ordered to pay more than $350,000 in restitution to the state plus fines, the state Department of Taxation said in news releases.

LIHU'E, Kauai - The county Department of Parks and Recreation and state Department of Education have scheduled a joint open house for program providers who are interested in operating Furlough Friday programs for elementary school students at their respective facilities.

A 30-year-old man apparently drowned yesterday, police said. About 4 p.m., the man's body was seen floating on the water and bystanders pulled him out near the 4600 block of Kahala Avenue, near Hunakai Street, police said.

Kauai County has become the second county in Hawaii to ban plastic carryout bags at retail establishments.

The city today released a statement by the Hawaii Council of Mayors - Kauai County Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi and Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares - on the ongoing labor negotiations between the public employers and Hawaii Government Employees Association: "We're pleased that the labor ...

LIHU'E, Kauai - Previously approved 7 percent salary increases for the county's top appointed officials will be pushed back for one year under a proposal by the Carvalho administration as a mitigation against a slowing economy and the county's tight financial prospects.