Cathryn, the word "normal," as Chris is using it, is a seismological term which means vertical slip on a fault. Specifically, it means slip in an extensional environment, where two blocks move apart and consequently one slips down relative to the other. A better term to have used here, where we don't know much about the fault that produced the quake, is "dip-slip," meaning vertical slip in general (slip in the direction of the dip of the fault plane), as opposed to strike-slip (meaning horizontal slip along the strike of the fault). He did accurately convey that the predominant motion was horizontal rather than vertical. The opposite of "normal" is "reverse" - also dip slip, but where the stress regime is compressional. As to what's "normal" for Hawaii, I dunno, but I suspect a hot-spot volcanic area tends to be somewhat extensional.

Mike Williams
Arroyo Grande, CA USA