Pahoa man cited second time for entering closed disaster area

HILO — A 37-year-old Pahoa man was recently cited for a second time for loitering in a closed disaster area amid the ongoing lower East Rift Zone eruption in Puna.

DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officers on June 29 cited Daniel W. Records, of Pahoa, at the entrance to Lava Tree State Monument which has been closed since the eruption began in early May. Officers reported he was riding a motorcycle, traveling up Lava Tree Road from the Highway 132 entrance.

This is Records’ second citation for loitering in a closed disaster area. He was one of five people cited in the same area on June 6 for loitering under Hawaii County code.

Another Pahoa resident was cited by DOCARE officers on Tuesday. He was identified as 49-year-old Ano Hanamana. Hanamana was cited after officers observed him walking in the closed disaster area near Papaya Farms Road.

Since the start of the eruption in early May, DOCARE officers have written 84 citations.

Under a proclamation issued last month by Gov. David Ige, people convicted of violating HCC 7-10(1) could face penalties of up to $5,000 in fines and a year in jail.