Mobi PCS Coverage Map

Mobi PCS has upgraded their cell network on the Kona side:

Honolulu-based Mobi PCS has activated a new cell site in Holualoa, on the Kona side of the Big Island, to enhance its 3G voice and Hele Wireless Broadband networks in the area.

The addition boosts in-building and street coverage throughout residential areas of Holualoa, including the Kilohana, Komohana, Iolani and Kahakai Estates subdivisions, and is one of nearly 20 new cell sites the company has deployed this year.

Source: Star Bulletin

Photo: SCOTT GROSSKREUTZ. Hilo radiologist Scott Grosskreutz holds a 7-pound mango from one of his trees. He is standing next to the Keitt mango tree in his back yard.

Hilo Radiologist, Scott Grosskreutz, grew a 7 pound mango in his backyard, just shy of the record.

Grosskreutz said if he had harvested the fruit two months ago, it would have been a world record. But a 7-pound, 7-ounce mango was reported Aug. 27 on Mindanao island in the Philippines.

Grosskreutz said he has two trees side by side in his back yard at the 250-foot elevation in Honomu. One has Keitt fruit, a Florida variety described on the Internet as “one of the world’s most outstanding mangoes.”

The backyard farmer, a radiologist, said his Keitt tree has been very productive for many years, “but this time around, a storm kind of blew off some blossoms so only one side produced heavy this year.”

He took 250 pounds off the tree Thursday, he said. Most range from 1 to 4 pounds, with a few from 5 to 7 pounds, he said.

He said he weighed his prize mango — “bigger than your head” — at Hill’s home and garden center in Hilo.

He also weighed the mango Wednesday on the calibrated scale at the U.S. post office and confirmed it was 7 pounds.

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3. Big Island, Hawaii
Where else in the world can food lovers sample Chinese char-siu, sushi topped with Spam, Portuguese sausages, and lillikoi pancakes—all within a couple of hours drive? Visitors to the Big Island might want to consider looking past typical resort luau’s and instead rent a car in search of the many diverse local grinds that dot the island for a true onolicious taste of Hawaii.

Grinds or grindz is Hawaiian pidgin for all types of food, and Hawaii is certainly a mecca for all types of food. From filling plate lunches of Korean-style barbecue, Japanese Katsu curry, or Chinese chow fun served alongside two scoops of rice to sweet Filipino rice cakes, tuna poke, and traditional Kalua pig, the Big Island literally has something for everyone.

Don’t miss: Sample the king of all calorie-laden meals, the Loco Moco, consisting of two generous scoops of rice topped with a fried hamburger, brown gravy, and a couple of fried eggs at Café 100 in Hilo. While there, check out the Hilo farmer’s market. Open Wednesdays and Saturdays, their motto is, “from dawn ’til it’s gone.” Sip fresh coconut juice straight from the shell as you savor fresh, locally grown mangosteens, lychees, and passion fruits from more than 200 vendors featured each week.

Still not a fan of lychees

Source: Away.com via Star Bulletin

From the Star Bulletin:

Police yesterday charged a 22-year-old Puna man who allegedly tried to kidnap a 16-year-old girl in Pahoa.

Dickenson Nakashima was charged with second-degree unlawful imprisonment. Bail was set at $1,000.

A school resource officer received a report Tuesday from Pahoa High School officials that there was an attempted kidnapping of a girl while she was walking to a bus stop in the Tiki Gardens subdivision.

Police were able to determine the suspect’s identity and arrested Nakashima at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday

No word on location of the incident.

Dickenson Nakashima

The state Department of Transportation, citing airport activity and revenue and expenditure forecasts, increased the holdroom rate at Hilo to $18.43 a passenger from $3.91. It was the second increase in five months after the rate was adjusted to $3.91 from $2.81 on Feb. 1.

“These charges will significantly impact air travel, result in much higher fares, less service and ultimately could result in the elimination of all service to Hilo,” said Jonathan Ornstein, chairman and chief executive of Mesa Air Group, the parent of go! “It’s 100 times higher than it is in Kona.”

As a frequent user of the Hilo airport, this stinks

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HILO >> The varroa mite parasite that’s been killing bees across the country is spreading on the Big Island, threatening local fruit and macadamia nut industries.

The tiny, parasitic bug has escaped a quarantine area around Hilo and spread to Hamakua and Puna.

On the mainland, the varroa mite has destroyed more than half of some beekeepers’ hives and devastated most wild honeybee populations.

Mainland bees have also been hit by another illness called colony collapse disorder, which causes adult bees to abandon their hives.

Hawaii’s first varroa mite was found in 2007 on Oahu, where it is now widely established.

The mites breed in the bees’ hives, living off their blood. The mites weaken the bees, allowing other viruses and diseases to kill them.

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