Floods plague Windward Oahu

A lingering storm dumps more rain on the region, halting traffic in some areas and prompting emergency cleanups in others

Torrential rains from Waiahole to Kahuku flooded roadways and homes, closed schools and caused at least two landslides yesterday.

SCHOOL CLOSURES These schools will be closed today because of fears over flash flooding: » Kaaawa Elementary » Hauula Elementary » Laie Elementary » Kahuku Elementary » Kahuku High and Intermediate Source: Education Department TOP RAINFALL TOTALS Here are the top five rain totals on Oahu for the 24-hour period ending at 8:45 last night: 1. Punaluu Pump: 11.84 inches 2. Kahuku Training Area: 7 inches 3. Kii: 5.54 inches 4. Luluku: 2.1 inches 5. Olomana Fire Station: 1.5 inches Source: National Weather Service

The storm stranded many Windward Oahu residents for hours in their cars and spurred others to wage a battle against Mother Nature to clean out storm drains and save their property.

Last night, officials were closely watching a Kaaawa home that was in danger of crumbling into a stream and blocking a nearby bridge, potentially sending floodwaters onto roadways and into other homes.

State Transportation Department spokesman Scott Ishikawa said an embankment behind the home on Huamalani Street was significantly eroded by rising, fast-moving waters.

Over the course of yesterday, firefighters responded to reports of minor flooding at more than 32 homes, fire spokesman Kenison Tejada said. During the heaviest rainfall, fire engines were called in from Waikele and downtown Honolulu to help.

Starting as early as 7 a.m., flooding closed roadways up and down the Windward Coast, while two mudslides at Kualoa Point and Kaaawa also snarled traffic.

At about 7 last night, police reopened Kamehameha Highway at Kualoa, and traffic was moving slowly. Police said any heavy rain would likely close the roadway again.

Also, two city buses that were stranded for hours at Swanzy Beach Park were able to start traveling on the cleared highway, Oahu Civil Defense said. The buses had about 25 passengers on board.

"Who left the water running? Turn it off," quipped Kaaawa resident Hilary Rillamas yesterday as rain tap-danced on her large umbrella. "This is the worst I've seen it."

During a break in the heaviest rain, Rillamas, friend Karen Joanou and their children sloshed through ankle-deep water along Kamehameha Highway in Kaaawa looking for backed-up waterways to clear. They were not alone.

After securing their own homes, several groups of residents worked together to clear streams and other waterways up and down Kaaawa in hopes of guarding against more flooding. At Kaaawa Elementary School, James Kahele joined a few neighbors to cut vegetation and rusted chain-link fencing blocking a drainage culvert.

"We're clearing the debris so the water can just flow," Kahele said.

After they had finished, the water swept through the drainage canal and toward the ocean.

The National Weather Service said the rains, which started Wednesday on the Windward Coast, were associated with a low-pressure trough several hundred miles off Oahu coupled with southeasterly winds. Tradewinds are expected to return today, likely bringing lighter showers and overcast skies for much of Oahu.

Over the 48-hour period ending at 5 p.m. yesterday, Punaluu saw more than a foot and a half of rain, said National Weather Service forecaster Robert Ballard.

Kahuku was not far behind, with nearly 11 inches.

A flash-flood warning remained in effect for all of Oahu through 10 last night. Ballard said the warning could be extended through today if showers persist. "This is an unusual and dangerous situation. We really want to stress that to people," he said. "It's not going to take much to bring a wall of water sweeping down one of those mountains."

With rain in the forecast today, state Education Department officials decided to close five schools on Windward Oahu, said spokesman Gregg Knudsen. Four public schools were closed yesterday because of the rains, and officials reported minor flooding at several of the campuses, including Kahuku High and Intermediate.

At Kaaawa Elementary School, fields of high grass were nearly submerged underwater.

Rains also closed the Polynesian Cultural Center and Malaekahana State Park, where a foot of water was reported in the parking lot.

"This is crazy," said Michele Pouvave, a Kaaawa resident whose downstairs laundry room was under a foot of water. "All my clothing is floating around down there."

While it was still pouring outside, Craig Long struggled to free an exercise mat that had lodged in a culvert fronting his Kaaawa home. The mat was clogging the drain that led to the ocean across the highway, causing water to rise around his elevated home.

"The mattress got stuck," Long said as he watched it float out to sea in water the color of chocolate milk. "It's now on its way to California."

On Kauai the rain caused some minor flooding, rockslides and a treated-sewage spill at a popular small-boat harbor near Waimea. Waste-water officials said they released the waste water at the Waimea plant into the ocean after flooding overloaded the system.

The water is usually used for irrigation but could still contain microorganisms that can cause illness, said Edward Tschupp, head of Kauai's waste-water division.

Also on Kauai's leeward side, flooding and a minor rockslide caused lane closures of the main thoroughfares through the Kalaheo-Eleele area early Thursday morning. The problem spots were cleared by daybreak yesterday, said Kauai Civil Defense administrator Gregg Morishige.

Over the 24-hour period ending at 8:45 last night, Mount Waialeale saw nearly 8 inches of rain, while Kapahi got 5 inches.

The rains spurred the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to stop issuing camping permits for Kauai state parks, along with Malaekahana State Recreation Area and Kahana Valley State Park on Oahu, until the bad weather subsides.

"We advise the public to avoid trails or streams during the stormy conditions," said DLNR Chairman Peter Young.

This morning, a police helicopter is expected to fly over Windward Oahu and the North Shore to find any trouble spots that might have developed overnight.

Oahu Civil Defense spokesman John Cummings said volunteers will be on call to direct traffic or clear roadways if necessary. Also, officials will decide whether to keep a shelter in Hauula open for a second day. The shelter opened last night but no one used it.

---