|
Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Sunken road causing
floods at high tideQuestion: In Mapunapuna, on Ahua Street where Enterprise Rent a Car is located, a little mauka of the traffic light, it's always flooded during the day, especially on Saturdays. You can't get through the water. Recently, on a Saturday, we had to turn left at the light and go up Mapunapuna Street. Where is the water coming from? Why is it always flooded there?
Answer: After you called in your complaint, another reader contacted us about the flooding at Ahua and Kilihau streets, saying while water levels at that intersection fluctuate, water is "always there and pose(s) a danger both in the form of getting stuck in this massive puddle and by soaking the brakes and the disks and pads (of a car), which can make stopping the car at the next intersection quite hazardous."
The problem is that the Mapunapuna area has sunk, with the low point of the Ahua-Kilihau intersection probably only two feet above mean sea level, according to Larry Leopardi, director of the city Department of Facility Maintenance.
So the intersection floods every time there is a high tide of 2 feet or greater, with water backing up from Moanalua Stream through the drainage system and up through the catch basins at the corners of that intersection, he said.
On the Saturday you traveled the area, the highest tide was 2.7 feet, around 4:30 p.m., "which should have resulted in a very large ponded area probably 6 to 8 feet deep," Leopardi said.
Other areas in Mapunapuna also are plagued with this high-tide "ponding" at the catch basins, although the Ahua-Kilihau intersection is the worst, he said.
Leopardi said it is beyond his department's capabilities to resolve the flooding problem.
Instead, the city Department of Design and Construction is working with landowner Damon Estate to fix it. Akinaka and Associates, a consulting engineering firm, has been retained to look into the problem and come up with solutions.
The Mapunapuna Drainage Improvements project is in its planning phase and is targeted for completion later this year. The planning study is $100,000, with the city and Damon Estate each contributing $50,000.
Mahalo
To HPD officer Mark Smith of the solo bike detail. On the evening of July 17, my son was driving Ewa-bound on the H-1 freeway by the airport viaduct when his tire struck something and blew out. His vehicle skidded across two lanes, stopping next to a wall. Fortunately, no one was hurt. I called AAA, then went to meet my son. When I got there, the tow truck still had not arrived, but officer Smith was waiting with my son and his friends. Having to wait about an hour along the left side of the freeway next to the concrete divider is quite frightening and dangerous. Officer Smith was absolutely awesome, and his gentle demeanor soothed the anxiety of my son and his passengers. He also used his personal cell phone to call AAA to find out when the truck was arriving. While it may be his job to patrol the freeway and look for accidents like this, I felt he went beyond the call and was definitely an angel in disguise. -- Carla "Pua" Fabella
|
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Got a question or complaint?
Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210,
Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered.
E-mail to kokualine@starbulletin.com
