Fire threat
Three students, at leisure around a wooded pond area in Keaukaha, started a fire at the base of an ironwood tree on a windy, dry Saturday.
I spoke with them about the conditions, the danger, the roots of the tree, but they didn’t seem concerned.
I circled back around later and put the fire out because they didn’t seem to have a clue, and they had no implements to get water for that purpose.
As weather conditions change, the risk of out-of-control fires may go up in Hilo. Fire condition warning signs and fire education may be needed for those who do not understand the risks and illegality of their actions with fire building in the woods and elsewhere.
JoAnn Garrigan
Hilo
Airport
management
Having formally worked at the Hilo International Airport in a law enforcement capacity for almost a decade, I have learned that in order for any airport to function properly on a daily basis, it is vital that a competent airport manager be available at all times to insure that operations run smoothly and efficiently every day.
Since the retirement of the Hilo airport manager last year, there has been no qualified replacement, and the airport responsibilities are currently being overseen and managed by officials working at the Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport instead.
That being said, expect maybe more passenger delays and other problematic issues to arise in the future at the Hilo airport due to a lack of direction and leadership from the airport manager’s office.
Prentiss Moreno
Hilo
Voting machines work
There is one bit of crucial logic, although there are myriad, that stands out after reading yet another article about those who think voting machines are inaccurate and hackable (“I don’t want a banana republic,” Tribune-Herald, March 19).
In states where doubt was cast in the security of voting machines and a hand count was demanded, sometimes multiple times, there was no discernible discrepancy.
Trumpests, why don’t you get it?
Karen Cooper
Hilo
