KAILUA-KONA — Skeletal remains unearthed last week at Old Kona Airport Park have been deemed an “inadvertent burial find.”
A man, who asked not to be identified, said he came across the skeletal remains around 1:30 p.m. July 6 along the shoreline of Old Kona Airport Park. The man, who walks the shoreline almost every day, said it appeared inclement weather the night before had removed a lot of sand and unearthed the remains, which appeared to have been, at some point, placed with care within a circular rock pattern.
West Hawaii Today is not providing any additional details on the find, including its exact location, to protect the remains and out of respect for descendants. Iwi, the bones of the dead, are considered a cherished possession and were hidden, guarded, respected, and venerated.
The man told West Hawaii Today he immediately contacted police, who took the report and forwarded it to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Historic Preservation Division, which is handling the find, according to DLNR spokeswoman Deborah Ward.
She said a Hawaii Island burial sites specialist and the Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement responded to the site. They are now in “consultation with descendants of the area.” No additional information was immediately available.
Old Kona Airport Park is situated on land and shoreline rich with cultural history. According to a cultural impact assessment completed in August 2010 for the Kailua Park master plan, documented sites within the park include habitation sites, multiple burial and re-interment sites, numerous agriculture and activity areas, lava tube shelters and petroglyphs and papamu, which is where the checkers-like game of konane was played.
Makaeo is both the name of the coastline between Kukailimoku Point and Pawai Bay and a fishing village that occupied the area until the airport’s construction in 1948. A radiocarbon date of 1410-1665 AD was obtained from an agricultural feature in an adjacent parcel indicating use of the area during the pre-Contact period.
“Based upon numerous previous exposures of burials in the beach sands, the Project area is likely to contain substantial additional burials — as yet undiscovered and undocumented — located in the sand dunes and beach areas makai (seaward) of the existing runway,” the assessment reads.
The management of burial sites over 50 years old falls under the state Historic Preservation Division. According to the division’s website, 98 percent of burial cases handled by the division relate to native Hawaiian skeletal remains.
Any skeletal remains accidentally discovered must be reported to the division, as well as local police, according to the division. If remains are estimated at less than 50 years old, they fall under the jurisdiction of local police.
If a person discovers a burial site they should stop activity in the immediate area and leave the remains in place before contacting SHPD at 692-8015 and police. For nonemergencies, Hawaii Island police can be reached at 935-3311.