The tenants of a walk-up apartment building in Kalihi are on edge, worrying about whether the next bout of heavy rain will cause the hillside behind them to come crashing down.

Earlier this week, following anxiety over the arrival of Tropical Storm Lane, residents said a city official, along with a Honolulu Police Department officer, knocked on their doors, recommending that they voluntarily evacuate because the hillside could potentially collapse.

During the rain a slew of mud and debris came down from a construction site on top of the hillside. The construction, combined with recent rain, has created a hazardous condition.

“Any time that they move something up on the mountain, it affects everybody here,” said Margaret Bush, a tenant of the apartment complex for seven years. “It’s an unsafe thing right now for everybody because we’re on the edge. Where do we go? When’s it going to happen?”

State Rep. John Mizuno stepped in to try and help the residents as well as other neighbors along Kalihi Street.

Mizuno said he hand-delivered a letter to Gov. David Ige on Thursday, requesting that the state intervene and work with the city to mitigate the situation.

“At this point we think it’s prudent that we go with the governor working with the mayor to address this because we don’t know when it’s going to come down,” said Mizuno. “We’re just one heavy rainstorm away from these people being washed out, and it could be catastrophic.”

By law, he said, the governor could step in and mitigate a hazardous situation — in this case, a potential landslide.

Mizuno said the city has found the property owner in violation of a local ordinance regarding the discharge of effluent other than stormwater runoff onto a public right of way.

On Tuesday, when residents got the knock on their doors to voluntarily evacuate, heavy rain had created landslides that closed Likelike Highway, and a flash flood watch was in effect for the entire state.

Bush said she and her husband decided not to evacuate because they had nowhere convenient to go.

But her neighbor Kawika Mattos evacuated his wife, who is expecting, and three young children. The family is staying at a hotel until the situation is declared safe.

“My biggest concern is I have children, so I’m responsible for their well-being,” he said. “I definitely don’t want it pounding at 1 a.m. in the rain and have to evacuate then, waking up the kids when they have school the next day.”

Lincoln Laysa remains at the apartment, as well, where he has lived 22 years, but moved his wife to her brother’s house because she has mobility problems and relies on an oxygen tank.

Robert Reynolds, one of the owners of the lot above the hillside where the construction is being done, said when he was contacted by officials about flooding in the street below, he took the steps necessary for mitigation right away.

He called an erosion control company, purchased materials that were delivered Thursday, and contractors have been hard at work installing them, he said. He was unaware that the governor had been contacted regarding the situation.

“We’re taking every precaution that we can and installing all the safety measures and appropriate erosion mechanisms to reduce any possibility of mud running off the site, so it shouldn’t be an issue going forward,” he said. “I want to make sure everyone is aware of what we’re doing to help mitigate the situation and to make it safe for everybody.”

Reynolds said his family owns the property and that they are building homes and relying on contractors to do it properly.

Eight apartment units are on the second floor of 3075 Kalihi St., while the ground floor is home to an organic herb company, a laundromat, a church and the Hawaii Korea Cultural Center.

The Hawaii Korea Cultural Center owns the building, according to county tax records.

Next door to the apartment complex is a Keiki o ka Aina campus, along with residential homes. Apartment residents said homes across the street from the complex were also warned.

Lisa Nilsen, who lives down the street, said flooding in the neighborhood is also a longtime problem due to inadequate drainage systems during heavy rain.

“We’re constantly getting flooded,” she said.