Kalihi residents demand action to prevent rockfalls

Department of Emergency Management officials are advising residents displaced by Thursday’s rockfall in Kalihi to continue to stay away from their homes while arrangements for securing several precariously situated boulders on the hillside above are handled by private landowners.

The warning, delivered Saturday at a department-sponsored meeting at Kalihi Valley District Park, did not go over well with residents who say they are fearful of the lingering threat, confused by the apparent lack of action in addressing the danger, and angry over what they see as indifference by the city and the state.

"They’re waiting for someone to get killed," said Deborah Vicari, whose home was damaged by a falling boulder. "It’s very upsetting. Even if it’s on private land, the state and the city and county should step in and do something to make sure that this doesn’t happen again. Instead, they’re just passing the buck."

Late Thursday night, two large boulders tumbled down the hillside above Kula Kolea Place, damaging three homes, two of them severely. According to one witness, one of the boulders — approximately 6 feet in diameter and weighing between 3 and 4 tons — scraped along the side of one home and stopped in the middle of the road. Another boulder tore through the roof of a home, continued through a carport and bounced on the street before crashing into another home.

There were no injuries, but nine homes were evacuated as a precaution.

The American Red Cross Hawaii State Chapter provided shelter and other services to the displaced residents. The shelter closed Saturday afternoon after the last of the displaced residents was able to secure lodging.

On Friday, private consultants hired by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources surveyed the area and determined that the boulders originated on private land jointly owned by the Church of Christ of the Redeemed of the Lord and William and Shirley Jacinto of Maui.

During the survey, consultants identified two boulders measuring 3 to 4 feet in diameter and four to five smaller rocks, which were loosened by the original rockfall, that still pose a danger of sliding down the hillside.

DEM Deputy Director Peter Hirai said the boulders could either be removed or stabilized, but emphasized that only the private owners have the authority to make such arrangements.

"We’ve relayed all of this information to the residents and advised them to remain away from their homes until the situation is remediated," Hirai said. "We’re still working with the property owners to determine what course of action. We’re trying to get this done as expediently as possible. Our primary priority right now is life safety of the residents."

Residents who attended the meeting left dissatisfied.

"I don’t know why we even came," said Cathy Cachola, who lives on nearby Kula Kolea Drive. "They had no action plan, no nothing. It’s like they’re waiting for another accident before they do something."

Cachola’s husband, Keola, said he and others are growing frustrated at what they see as jurisdictional hot potato.

"Everyone is passing it around saying, ‘not our problem, not our problem.’"

The cost of mitigation efforts could become an issue.

Hirai said initial estimates for securing or removing the boulders ranges from $50,000 to $200,000.

According to a 2010 property tax assessment, the property from which the boulders originated measures approximately 10 acres and has a land market value of $3,300. It is designated as preservation land.

Residents say they have been in contact with Arlene Kahawai, a representative of the church who they say has been responsive even though the small church likely lacks the resources to pay for the mitigation efforts.

They say they want the state to step in immediately and address the danger before another rockfall occurs, a option possible under Act 76, passed in 2009, which allows the governor to direct state employees to enter private property to address hazardous situations.

Under provisions of the act, private contractors hired by DLNR were allowed to secure and ultimately remove a massive boulder — estimated between 7 and 10 tons — from a privately owned hillside in Niu Valley last September.

The mitigation effort was funded by $175,000 released by DLNR as an emergency measure.

Vicari says she vividly recalls the events of Thursday evening.

"It was terrifying," she said. "It felt like an earthquake and then there were these loud cracks, like lightning. I went outside and there was so much smoke. When it all cleared, there was this big-ass boulder outside my house."