Hunt for cause of ‘bad
air’ in Maui office ends

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By Gary T. Kubota
gkubota@starbulletin.com

WAILUKU >> The Maui County administration said it won't continue efforts to find the cause of a bad-air problem that forced the evacuation of the top floor of the County Prosecutor's Office.

County spokeswoman Karlynn Kawahara said officials would have difficulty finding the problem, especially since it has not occurred again.

The decision follows a state health inspection report issued this week, saying officials were unable to locate the cause of the bad air and that the cause could have arisen from a number of sources.

Twelve employees in the prosecutor's office complained of headaches and respiratory problems on June 20, prompting the evacuation of the top floor, occupied by 32 workers.

State health inspector Jeff Eckerd said employees' descriptions of the smell varied, and he inspected the building long after the smell had disappeared.

Eckerd was notified about the problem at the end of June and inspected the building July 26.

Kawahara said the county had difficulty notifying Eckerd of the problem because he moves from one island to the next reviewing air quality in office buildings.

Eckerd said he is the only indoor air quality inspector in state government, and he was not able to visit Maui sooner because of a heavy workload and budget constraints.