MORE WET WEATHER EXPECTED THIS MONTH

Local meteorologist Carol Maafala-Baqui says this month is expected to be a wet one, similar to January, when the local weather station recorded a total of 26.87 inches of rainfall.

The normal average for the month of January, according to data from the Tafuna Weather Station, is 14.48 inches but the number nearly doubled last month.

Maafala-Baqui explained that the total number of inches is based on rainfall that was collected in the Tafuna area, although low lying villages and those located near the mountains received an additional ten or more inches.

She said that although the total rainfall for last month was far more than the norm, there have been years when the total rainfall for January has been greater.

IOANE TOMANOGI SUBMITS WINNING LOGO ENTRY

Chief Solid Waste Officer and Brownsfield Coordinator for the American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency (AS-EPA) Ioane Tomanogi is the creator of the new logo for the Association of States and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO) Newsletter.

“Last year, I designed a logo for the Association and it was selected from various logos designed by members and attendees from other states and territories,” Tomanogi explained. “It's a great accomplishment for our island territory,” he added.

The ASTSWMO recently celebrated its 40-year anniversary, and one of the key decisions called for an update in the logo and slogan for the Association.

A logo and slogan competition was held and ASTSWMO’s members and their colleagues were invited to submit their ideas. The two winners were announced during ASTSWMO’s Annual Meeting in Reston, VA.

American Samoa’s Ioane Tomanogi submitted the winning logo while Butch Dye from Maryland won with his catchy slogan: “Providing pathways to our Nation’s environmental stewardship since 1974.”

Currently, Tomanogi plays a key role in AS-EPA’s Keep American Samoa Beautiful (KASB) campaign program.

LOCAL FARMERS AND SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM

Store shelves are still empty and the supply of certain food items still limited on island, as containers continue to sit idly at the Port of Long Beach in California, at an estimated cost of $2 billion per day.

Locally, consumers are finding it hard to find items like eggs and cold cuts.

A source tells Samoa News that on average, local farmers supply about 40,000 lbs. of produce a week for the local school children under the School Lunch Program. But with the current situation, the demand for local produce has doubled, to 80,000 lbs. per week.

The farmers are able to supply the demand— for now. The question is, how long will they be able to? With the territory importing over 90% of its food items, the delay in the arrival of the containers has made it more clear than ever that planting and cultivating the land is the sensible — and the right — way to go.

FLAG DAY PLANE CRASH MEMORIAL

While most people visit the Tramway site in Utulei to enjoy a meal or just to hang out, many don’t know the significance of the area to the history of the territory, or the tragic event that occurred there nearly 35 years ago.

Now a new sign has been erected at the site, featuring photographs and a small explanation of the 1980 Flag Day plane crash that occurred during a demonstration by a group of six paratroopers of the US Army’s 25th Infantry Parachute Division from Hawaii.

According to the sign, the paratroopers were set to jump from a US Navy P-3 Orion anti-submarine aircraft and land on the Fagatogo Malae “for the entertainment of several thousand Flag Day celebrants.”

The P-3 Orion aircraft made two successful passes through Pago Pago Harbor, dropping the six paratroopers down to the Malae; but during the third pass, the aircraft flew too low and struck the tramway cable that stretched across the harbor.

“The plane’s tail stabilizer was cut off, and the plane banked to the right, crashing in the yard in front of the west wing of the Rainmaker Hotel, which is now Sadie’s by the Sea. The plane exploded, and jet fuel sprayed onto the hotel, setting it on fire. The fire destroyed the three buildings making up the 78-room west wing of the hotel. The crash killed six crewmembers and a local NASA worker who was also on board the aircraft. A Japanese tourist from Tokyo, who was staying at the hotel, was also killed.”

According to the sign, memorial services were held at the Fagatogo Malae the next morning with then Governor Uifaatali Peter Coleman joining high chiefs, school children, and scores of people who were in attendance.

Historic Preservation Officer David Herdrich explained that the AS Historic Preservation Office, along with the Dept. of Commerce, conducted a much needed ‘clean-up’ of the Tramway memorial and currently, a special task force – established by the Governor — is in the process of rehabilitating the site, to include restoring the tramway and bringing in a new cable car, as well as registering the site as a Scenic Overlook.