resident Hualalai Elderly Housing Oil consumption ADVERTISING Sad day when rain forests destroyed It’s sad modern technology can find oil-rich areas around the world for the world consumption. It would be a very sad day when rich oil countries start
Oil consumption
Sad day when rain forests destroyed
It’s sad modern technology can find oil-rich areas around the world for the world consumption. It would be a very sad day when rich oil countries start destroying nature’s last few areas of pristine forest and destroy the natural habitat of those living in South America. First the Amazon rain forest and now they want to rip through untouched virgin parts of Ecuador. What next, the Galápagos?
These few remaining areas of the world might be what is saving us from destruction now. I hope our need for fossil fuel doesn’t end up being our own doom.
Colleen Wallis
Kailua-Kona
Brush fire
Mahalo to all involved
Our quiet Tuesday afternoon was interrupted with the loud squawk and squeal of the bullhorn. It was telling us to vacate immediately our homes. The brush fire up the street that held us spellbound for the last hour, had advanced to within feet of our senior housing complex. Luckily for us, our management started the evacuation and shelter process when the fire was first discovered. The vans and buses began to pull in to help those without transportation. All cars and people in the 30 units in the upper phase were evacuated.
This was our second fire, our second evacuation, third if you count the tsunami; you never get used to it. Your heart is in your stomach. So many thoughts race through your head. What to take, how to carry the animals? If it all goes up in flames, what do I need and what can I carry? If you are fortunate enough to have your own transportation, where do you go, how long do you think this will take? Will it go out, like the last one? Will I lose everything? Will I be homeless?
As a resident, I know these to be facts. We saw smoke and flames a little before 2 p.m. By 3 p.m. we were evacuated. Approximately by 9:15 p.m. we were allowed to return to our homes, most buses arriving within the next hour. Firefighters and numerous fire trucks were still at the complex, hard at work.
Although it rained on and off most of the night, the next morning firefighters were hard at work on several hot spots. They had worked through the night. On a 6:30 a.m. inspection, it was quite disheartening to see the damage. Lots of blackened foliage, both sides of the street, trees had turned into blackened stubs and dirty gray ashes everywhere. We also still saw intermittent patches of burning, smoking, hot areas.
Soon you are overcome with sheer amazement and gratitude to all those that stopped the flames that came within inches of the Pines property and within feet of senior housing. The professional firefighters, helicopter pilots, YWAM, hundreds of volunteers, Hualalai Elderly Management, our property manager and the maintenance crew saved our lives and our homes.
We are truly blessed, thankful and overwhelmed with love and gratitude that we live in a town that took such good care of us.
Jan Benlein
resident Hualalai Elderly Housing
