India charts its own path with Pacific strategy

HONOLULU — As the U.S. seeks to bolster relations with India, which sees itself as a rising power in an unstable world, Hawai‘i is becoming a hot destination for Indian military men and diplomats as New Delhi refines its Pacific strategy.

City delays removal of Haiku Stairs segments

HONOLULU — By order of the state Intermediate Court of Appeals, a three-judge panel in July granted a temporary injunction brought by the Friends of Haiku Stairs that forced the city to stop its $2.6 million demolition job on the World War II-era mountainside staircase.

Roadwork scheduled on Kaua‘i this week

LIHU‘E — The roads in and around Lihu‘e are going to be littered with road-related projects this week, as the workload ramps up in the middle of summer, the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation said in an update on Friday.

Judge frees 3 of 4 suspects in Hilo burglary

HILO, Hawai‘i — A Hilo judge, over prosecutors’ objections, freed three of four suspects arrested on Aug. 4 in connection with the theft of a Worthington heavy-duty compressor and an accompanying trailer from a Makalika Street property in the Panaewa neighborhood of Hilo.

FBI, MPD investigate explosion on Maui

The Maui Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating a blast Thursday night from an improvised explosive device that detonated in a trash can — damaging a sport utility vehicle passing near it in Pukalani.

Art, words mark anniversary of Maui wildfires

LAHAINA, Hawaii — A Maui tradesman turned his passion for metal work into a 16-foot-tall, tear-shaped sculpture that he unveiled Wednesday night above the Lahaina burn zone on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the devastating wildfires.

Florence and the Machine: yin and yang rivalry on the waves

TEAHUPO’O, Tahiti — Gabriel Medina is a competitive surfing machine. A jewellery-clad, helicopter-riding superstar, the Brazilian is a tattooed terminator who paddles faster, pulls into the tube deeper and flies higher than just about anyone who ever rode a surfboard.

FBI, police investigating explosives planted on Maui

The FBI and the Maui Police Department are investigating who built and planted improvised explosive devices in the Kahului and Pukalani areas of Maui, according to a joint statement Thursday from the FBI’s Honolulu Division and MPD.

Overall costs for Maui expected to top $12 billion

LAHAINA, Hawai‘i — A year after the deadly August 2023 Maui fires, costs are stacking up for the removal of debris, environmental remediation, finding temporary housing for those displaced and the herculean task of actually rebuilding communities and returning people home.