Councilman calls for emergency proclamation for East Honolulu
COURTESY Pastor Tim Mason
Montessori School at Calvary by the Sea in Aina Haina was flooded on Saturday.
A Honolulu City Councilman is requesting emergency proclamations to help homeowners in East Honolulu who sustained severe damage from flooding on Friday.
City Councilman Trevor Ozawa said in a news release today that he requested emergency proclamations to address the needs of homeowners affected by the storm.
Meanwhile, the city is supplying two large roll-off dumpsters in East Honolulu this week to aid with flood cleanup.
The city Department of Environmental Services says the dumpsters will be placed at the Hawaii Kai Park and Ride Facility and the Kawaikui Beach Park at the bottom of Hawaii Loa Ridge for residents to drop off items damaged from the weekend storm. The bins will be emptied each morning through Friday.
The city is not accepting hazardous materials, major appliances, regular trash or non-storm related debris.
In addition, the city is suspending citations for bulky items set out early from Aina Hina to Hawaii Kai. Normal bulky item pickup begins April 23 for Aina Hina and April 25 for Niu Valley to Hawaii Kai. The city will provide additional bulky item pickups for areas with significant storm damage, the department said.
Ozawa said if Caldwell issues an emergency proclamation for Honolulu, Gov. David Ige may be able to issue his own emergency proclamation.
Ozawa, who is in Washington D.C. for business, said he also met with U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz regarding federal assistance available through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
This morning, Schatz issued a statement saying that the communities of Oahu and Kauai need as much help as they can get.
“I have reached out to the appropriate federal agencies—including FEMA, SBA, USDA, and DOT—and let them know where we stand,” he said in the statement. “They are ready to answer the call once Governor Ige, Mayor Caldwell, and Mayor Carvalho request assistance. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will work with the other members of the congressional delegation and do everything possible to help these communities get on the road to recovery.”
