HANALEI — A single emergency lane of Kuhio Highway by Hanalei Hill is targeted to be open today for emergency responders only — not for the general public, according to the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation Highway Divison.
The emergency access is for critical services, like refuse, utility service repair, fire suppression, postal services and essential supplies, according to a press release.
HIDOT is currently discussing a schedule with county officials of when the access to the road will be open and closed.
“I would say absolutely, please, if you don’t have to come up here, then please, do not come up here,” District Engineer Larry Dill said on Monday. “More vehicles up here will slow things down and complicate the process.”
After last week’s landslide, a dozen of HIDOT’s highway crew were flown from the other islands. Dill said the crew has been proactively removing yards of debris off of the highway with a bulldozer as they continue monitoring the landslide’s movement with heavy showers forecasted this week.
“We’ve had people out here doing survey work to establish monitoring points because we’re monitoring the highway up here for any signs of settlement,” Dill said. “Actually, this morning we brought guys down (the hill). We’re going to establish slope monitoring locations on the slope itself, and they’re going to locate a station on the highway across the Hanalei River to collect that data so we have 24-hour notification of any slopes and any movement.”
Besides clearing the road at the bottom of the landslide, the crew is smoothing out the slopes on the lower side of the landslide to ensure that it’ll be safe for emergency vehicles, DOT Highway Division Deputy Director Ed Sniffen said.
“We’re also getting concrete barriers to put in on the upper side of the slope or upper side of the roadway to make sure that if any debris does come down, there’s a there are structures there to catch the debris,” Sniffen said. “We’re going to be setting up traffic controls and lighting in the area to make sure it’s safe to drive at night.”
“We’ll also set up a slope monitoring system that sends us automatic alerts, it should sense any movements of the scope itself. Yeah, so all that will be put in place to make sure we keep everybody safe. There is a portion on the upper side of the slope that we’re going to be working to stabilize during what even while we open.”
Sniffen said the state will be working with the community on time-frames the road will be shutting down as they work to clear the slope of Hanalei Hill.
“Once we start doing work on that slope, there’s high potential that debris from the slope will come down and up on the roadway,” Sniffen said. “We don’t want anybody out there. And while we’re doing that, we’ll look at the date or times during the day that would allow access.”
Sniffen said his team is going to be working with the county on setting up a meeting with the community about access discussions as they work with the county.
“We’ll finalize those discussions then, but in the interim, we’re pushing really hard to make sure we can open the roadway tomorrow (Tuesday), for emergency access,” Sniffen said. “We want to make sure that the county and emergency management have access, you know unfettered access to that area so they can start addressing real big issues. That trash issues, make sure that there are pickups and everything that could happen. Getting more provisions out to the communities as quickly as possible. All those things will happen first, before we open up to the public.”
There is still alternating traffic at mile marker 4.5 near Waikoko, according to a Monday press release.
You remember me, Tyler? I won’t be able to make it to Hanalei this summer. But do say Hi to my cuz for me. You know me, I was the spiffy looking one dressed up at your wedding, I’m whiter now. Only because of the pandemic. Stay at home rule, Maybe next time.