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Manoa flood bill is at
$1M and rising
Officials will see if the damage
could qualify for federal aid
Saturday's floods in Manoa caused more than $1 million in damage to homes, directly affected more than 60 families and left a couple with two children without a place to live.
Pitch in to clean» Those interested in volunteering in cleanup efforts at the University of Hawaii can call 956-7486.» Students, faculty and staff can call the University of Hawaii's hot line, 956-0001, for updates. Residents affected by the storm: » Flood victims can call the Aloha United Way's 211 information and referral line to report damage made to their homes or businesses.
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State and city Civil Defense officials will set up a Disaster Assistance and Recovery Center at Manoa Valley District Park tomorrow to help residents who are concerned about flood insurance, loans and other issues. The center will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the old gymnasium.
At least one family is looking for a new place to live after the floods lifted their home off its foundation on the 2600 block of Pamoa Road. The home was declared unsafe by a Civil Defense official.
"The home was lifted by the foundation with us inside," said Harald Ebeling, a UH astronomy professor who is now staying with friends. "I felt the walls shaking."
"We're just glad to be alive," said Ebeling, who has two children, ages 2 and 8.
Gov. Linda Lingle signed a state disaster proclamation Sunday that will provide low-interest personal and commercial loans to flood victims. Mayor Jeremy Harris also signed a county disaster proclamation yesterday.
Officials will determine later whether the damage assessment meets a threshold to qualify for federal assistance.
A total of 10.07 inches of rain was reported at the Lyon Arboretum during a 12-hour period from 2 p.m. Saturday to 2 a.m. Sunday. The National Weather Service said there is only "a 2 percent probability of such a heavy rainfall event like this occurring in the upper Manoa Valley area."
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In other developments, Noelani Elementary School will remain closed tomorrow for health and safety reasons, said Principal Fred Yoshinaga. The school is scheduled to reopen Thursday. Yoshinaga estimated more than $250,000 in damage to the school.
Behind Noelani Elementary, Pamoa Road residents continued to pile rolled-up carpets, sofas, mattresses and dressers covered with mud on their front lawns to be picked up by city workers.
A concrete footbridge on Pawaina Street will be broken into pieces today after it was taken out by the force of the rushing water.
An aerial survey will be conducted today to check for any potential landslides, Lee said, noting that flood victims can call Aloha United Way's 211 information line to report any damage made to their homes or businesses.
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At UH, officials are expected to determine today whether classes will resume tomorrow. Hundreds of faculty, staff and volunteers worked around the clock to clean as many as 35 buildings that were damaged by the flood. Some e-mail and Web-based services were restored, also.
UH President David McClain said they are working to restore power to about 30 buildings. Hamilton Library, the Biomedical Sciences building, Sherman Laboratory and the Agricultural Science building suffered extensive damage, and it will take several weeks to restore power to them, McClain said. Large generators are being used at the Biomedical Sciences building to maintain research specimens.
Rebecca Cann, professor in cell and molecular biology, tried to salvage 18 years of research on endangered birds and human tissue yesterday. Cann's equipment, valued at thousands of dollars, was destroyed. "I've never seen anything quite like this," she said.
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