I recieved this article in my morning email and thought people on the list
might be interested. This is the first I heard of this accident.
-Sarah Watson
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Hawaii Hotels Worry Over Fuel Spill
.c The Associated Press
By MICHAEL TIGHE
HONOLULU (AP) -- Hotel officials on Kauai, the lush Garden Isle of the
Hawaiian chain, are worried that a grounded fishing vessel is sinking efforts
to restore the tourism industry.
``It's definitely a hit,'' grumbled Ron Romano, who doesn't have to look far
for the wreckage of the Van Loi. It's right in front of the Kauai Coconut
Beach Resort he manages.
He and others fear the 16,000 gallons of diesel fuel spilled by the 95-foot
ship will cause greater damage to the island's No. 1 industry than to its
environment.
Guests at several hotels are complaining about fumes and debris from
Saturday's accident. Some were moved to rooms away from the ocean, but others
left. The exodus continued Thursday. Romano estimated that he's lost at least
five rooms daily from his 312-room resort.
Shipwrecks don't have to be such a downer. Last month, sightseers flocked to
Waldport, Ore., to see the rusty, oil-laden bow of the New Carissa after it
nosed ashore. There were T-shirts for rubber-necking visitors, motels were
full and it actually cost money to park.
There's been no such shipwreck popularity here, and local officials fear any
negative publicity will stunt efforts to return tourism to levels enjoyed
before Hurricane Iniki decimated the island in 1992.
In fact, Hawaii has been mired in an economic malaise since 1991 and
preliminary estimates said the state received 6.8 million visitors in 1998, a
1.6 percent drop from 1997. Tourism is an $11 billion industry in Hawaii,
generating about a quarter of the state's tax revenue and a third of its jobs.
Both the Coconut Beach and the nearby 200-room Islander on the Beach have
written letters to guests detailing the situation and telling them not to go
in the water.
The hotels also tell guests that this isn't the Exxon Valdez.
``If they panic, we lose them all,'' Islander general manager Hakim Ouansafi
said. ``The first `Oh, no' is for the environment itself.
``The second concern is trying to let the people who saved for five years to
come over here know that it's an unusual accident that could happen
anywhere.''
Kauai is about 100 miles northwest of Honolulu. The island -- the beautiful
backdrop to such movies as ``South Pacific'' and ``Jurassic Park'' -- had
slightly more than 1 million visitors last year.
The Kauai Visitors Bureau hopes to attract 1.1 million this year with the
addition of direct flights from the mainland.
``My hopes are people will pick up the phone and call and say, `I was coming
in two weeks. Is this affecting the entire island or is it just an isolated
area?''' executive director Sue Kanoho said, adding that her answer will be
``isolated area.''
``My fear is they won't call and they'll book their trip to Maui.''
The Van Loi grounded Saturday on its way to Midway Island to catch swordfish.
The vessel broke up after relentless pounding by 12-foot waves and strong
winds that kept the Coast Guard from unloading the fuel.
No one was injured.
On Thursday, the vessel was in four pieces, with all except the stern
drifting toward shore. The accident occurred about 250 yards out in shallow
water popular for snorkeling and diving.
The Coast Guard still is working with vessel owner Vincent Nguyen of Honolulu
to remove the wreckage. Fuel-soaked Styrofoam, wood planks and life
preservers have been found, but there have been no traces of diesel found in
the surf.
About four miles of beach have been closed since Sunday but the state was
expected to reopen them by this weekend. Authorities believe most of the fuel
has dissipated, though a state marine biologist said diesel can damage coral
and marine invertebrates, including urchins and sea cucumbers.
Crews also are trying to find near-invisible fishing lines that drifted from
the grounded vessel. Those lines contain thousands of hooks that may attract
endangered Hawaiian monk seals and sea turtles living near the reef.
There is an upside: the vessel held about 500 boxes of frozen squid bait and
suspicions are that the seals and sharks have eaten.
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Sarah Watson
Silver Spring MD
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<A
HREF="http://www.geocities.com/southbeach/tidepool/8845">http://www.geocities.
com/southbeach/tidepool/8845
</A>
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" One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach. One can only
collect a few, and they are more beautiful if they are few. "
-Anne Morrow Lindbergh
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