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By George F. Lee, Star-Bulletin
Puuwai resident Keify Phillik-Sos and her children, Curty and
Camerin, were finally able to leave the project after their relatives
offered to put them up during the emergency.

Mercury scare
keeps some
out of homes

Health office says more than
18 units are contaminated

Legislator to call public meeting

---

By Mary Adamski
Star-Bulletin

Some Halawa housing residents were to return home today after their homes were given a clean bill of health in the mercury monitoring under way at the quarantined site.

The focus today also was on developing a plan to allow residents access to personal belongings in their units without creating great contamination, said DOH spokesperson Janice Okubo.

She could not cite a number but said more than the 18 units initially suspected of mercury exposure are contaminated.

The state has begun an investigation into the source of the mercury and the circumstances of its removal. "The site was previously identified as an area that will be cleaned up," according to a state Department of Defense release.

The state Health Department's epidemiology branch provided free urine screening of residents from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. today at Makalapa Community Center.

More than 100 area children have been examined at island hospitals and clinics since officials Monday discovered several children had brought home elemental mercury taken from an abandoned pumping station near Pearl Harbor. No one has been found with mercury poisoning, said Gary Gill, Department of Health deputy director for environmental health administration.

By George F. Lee, Star-Bulletin
Puuwai resident Michael Collins was finally able to retrieve
his medication after being trapped outside his home with
son Brandon following the closing of the project Monday.

Classes resumed today at Aiea Elementary School after an inspection team declared it free of mercury contamination yesterday. Officials closed it yesterday after a youngster brought some of the metal to school Monday.

About 70 displaced residents spent last night at Halawa District Park gymnasium, where cots and blankets were provided. The American Red Cross Hawaii chapter also served three meals at the shelter yesterday, and will keep it open as long as residents are not allowed back home, said spokeswoman Jocelyn Collado.

She said people from at least five homes were able to return this morning.

The forced quarantine separated families. People who were at home when police and fire units arrived Monday to close off the public housing were allowed to stay. People who were away during the day, including schoolchildren, were not permitted to return home. Residents were free to leave throughout the day but were not allowed to return.

Legislator to call public meeting Star-Bulletin staff A state representative whose district includes Halawa and Aiea wants to evaluate the state's overall response to the mercury exposure at a Halawa public housing complex. State Rep. Blake Oshiro (D, Red Hill-Pearlridge) said when he visited the Red Cross shelter at Halawa Gym and Aiea Elementary School last night that he was concerned about conflicting and/or insufficient information in the community on such a potentially volatile public health crisis. Oshiro said he plans to call a community meeting after the crisis is over to evaluate the state's response. He said his primary interest is to get the schools, the state Health Department, the city, public officials and the community working to improve the coordinated response and get help to people who were exposed.

Residents complained about being refused re-entry to their Puuwai Momi and Makalapa Manor homes, but Gill said it is necessary to contain the spread of the liquid metal. "We're trying to limit interaction. If we allow traffic in and out, it will just make it a longer term of waiting for everybody," Gill said. He said that by last night they had cordoned off sidewalks and lawn areas where mercury was found, and technicians from Pacific Environmental Co. had cleared about 10 percent of the grassy grounds.

Health officials "began a door-to-door assessment of the 260 units to see who's here," but they have not yet begun sweeping the interiors to detect mercury. "If we're able to give an all-clear by sundown Friday, we'll be very lucky," Gill said.

Michael Collins was one of several frustrated residents. He is outside Puuwai Momi along with four of his children while his wife, Corinne, and another son are at home. "I left to pick up the kids at school, and they wouldn't let me back in," said Collins.

He said he needs a uniform to report for work as a plumber on Hickam Air Force Base, but the Health Department crew stopped his wife from passing the clothes to him. "They let her bring my diabetes medicine," Collins said. "I went to Kmart to buy these shorts. I'm going to work tomorrow in borrowed pants.

"Where is anyone to help us? No one is giving us answers. We don't know who to complain to," he said.