By Aaron Morrison and Russ Bynum

(AP Photo/ Jae C. Hong)

Hawaii’s cherished notion of family, the ohana, endures in tragedy’s aftermath

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Families were torn asunder. A community is reeling with grief. More than 100 people have perished and dozens more remain missing after flames and smoke barreled from the hills and annihilated the historic town of Lahaina.

But even in places overwhelmed by despair and devastation, the Hawaiian spirit known as ohana endures.

In the Hawaiian lexicon, ohana is a sensibility, a way of thinking that means family, belonging, community and so much more — solace in a time of calamity. It is a unifying principle in an increasingly fragmented world. And in recent weeks, amid misfortune, the word has taken on profound importance in a place appealing for help.

By Bobby Caina Calvan, Jae C. Hong And Mike Householder 

Sheriff provides the first details of how a white man fatally shot 3 Black people at a Florida store

(AP Photo/John Raoux)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The white man who fatally shot three Black people in a racist attack at a Florida store shot one of his victims as she sat in her car, chased another through the store and shot the third as he entered, Jacksonville’s sheriff said Sunday.

Shooter Ryan Palmeter, 21, legally purchased his guns in recent months even though he had been involuntarily committed for a mental health examination in 2017, Sheriff T.K. Waters said. He killed himself after killing his three victims.

Waters identified those shot in Saturday’s attack at a Dollar General as Angela Michelle Carr, 52, who was shot in her car; store employee A.J. Laguerre, 19, who was shot as he tried to flee; and customer Gerrald Gallion, 29, who was shot as he entered the store.