CRAIG T. KOJIMA / 2015
Pasha Hawaii will assist the Puerto Rico hurricane disaster relief effort by shipping water from a government contractor in Long Beach, Calif.
Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
Pasha Hawaii plans to deploy one of its containerships to Puerto Rico to assist in disaster relief and possibly longer service in the region.
The company announced the plan Monday, saying it will initially carry 15 million bottles of water for a government contractor from Long Beach, Calif., to Puerto Rico as the territory struggles to recover from Hurricane Maria. After that, Pasha said, the ship will be available for further service in Puerto Rico.
Pasha is using the Horizon Spirit, a ship that has been in dry dock for reserve use in its West Coast-to-Hawaii service, in the new effort.
The ocean cargo carrier is delivering water for Atlanta-based Lipsey Mountain Spring Water, a distributor of bottled water that also is the sole bottled-water provider for the Federal Emergency Management Agency during emergencies. The load of water aboard the Horizon Spirit will pass through the Panama Canal and is expected to be in San Juan by the end of this month, Pasha said.