Question: Is it true that burglaries of homes being tented for termites are on the rise? We’ve heard about sophisticated groups of burglars equipped with high-tech gas masks hitting tented homes recently. We are planning to have our house tented and worry about security. My husband thinks he has to sleep in his car next to the house to make sure it is safe.
Answer: The Honolulu Police Department says it receives only “sporadic” reports of homes being broken into during termite tenting so this isn’t a crime that it tracks.
And it hasn’t heard about sophisticated bands of burglars targeting tented homes.
If anything, it’s been some clueless ones at work.
“There were a few crazy burglars that were using snorkels, which of course only gives you as much air as you can trap in that tube,” said Tim Lyons, executive director of the Hawaii Pest Control Association. “Those are some of the ones who actually got hurt and caught.”
He hasn’t heard of anyone using a special mask.
“The dangers of entering a home that’s being fumigated are obvious,” said HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu. “In 2011, two burglary suspects had to be hospitalized after breaking into a home that was being fumigated in Makiki.”
About six years ago, Lyons said, his association set up a reporting program. But because reports of break-ins are sporadic and “actually pretty small,” the association couldn’t detect any kind of pattern.
On average, with about 4,000 tentings a year statewide, 10 to 15 break-ins are reported.
“There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for when or where” they may occur, Lyons said.
But “while we have no hard evidence, we suspect many are drug-related (the need for money) and often occur in one area with a few ‘hits’ and then no incidents for months,” he said.
Some homeowners do opt to sleep in their cars or driveways during tenting, Yu said, while Lyons encouraged homeowners to alert neighbors to report suspicious activity. Many companies also suggest hiring a security guard from a licensed security firm.
LIBRARY WI-FI BACK
The Wi-Fi service at Liliha Public Library is back up, reports Branch Manager Sylvia Mitchell.
In fact, the service, which had been down for weeks when we addressed the situation in Tuesday’s column, was restored that day, she said.
“We’re sorry for the inconvenience,” Mitchell said.
AUWE
To two young women who didn’t do the right thing. I was driving on the H-3 freeway to Kaneohe about 1:50 p.m. Friday, Aug. 9, when my friend noticed them next to their dark green car, yelling for help, so I stopped. They said they had a flat tire but didn’t have a jack. So I loaned them my brand new jack. I was in a rush because I was late in picking up my granddaughter, so I gave them my phone number and said they could just return the jack later. I said I lived in a senior apartment in Ewa and they said they knew where that was because they also lived in Ewa. But it’s been one month and I haven’t heard from them. I trusted them so didn’t get their names or anything. I’m 87 years old and never thought something like this would happen. It is very disappointing. — Great-Great-Grandmother L. Chun
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Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
CORRECTION: Honolulu police do not check on homes that are being fumigated, or are for sale or for rent. An earlier version of this column and the story in the print edition said that homeowners could request that officers do house checks.
