Hawaii County has a new acting emergency management leader, which is routine news but worth noting for anyone tracking local disaster readiness.

• Neil Azevedo will take over as acting Civil Defense Administrator starting next week.
• He currently serves as Public Works deputy director and has handled storm response before.
• The agency coordinates emergency response efforts, including during storms.
• The position has been without a permanent head since Talmadge Magno retired in August.

Outlook: Azevedo will run emergency response operations in the interim while the county looks to fill the role permanently.