Question: There’s a steel plate on the H-3 Freeway Honolulu- bound, in the right lane right before the tunnel. It’s been there for months. There’s a sign alerting motorists to be careful (uneven roadway). … This plate is causing a lot of headaches for motorists who have to drive over it every day. When are they going to fix this?
Answer: “The metal plate on the H-3 Honolulu- bound before the tunnel is a temporary expansion joint fix. We will schedule the permanent repair to take into account the Pali Highway closure,” said Shelly Kunishige, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation.
That means it likely won’t be repaired until after the Pali reopens, to avoid disrupting H-3 traffic while the Pali is closed most of the day and more motorists use the H-3 back and forth from Windward Oahu.
Expansion joints are used to fill gaps between viaduct segments to allow for the concrete’s temperature- related expansion and contraction; the variation is about 6 inches during the hottest and coldest hours of the day, according to the DOT.
When the DOT replaced an expansion joint on the H-3 Honolulu-bound in 2014, the repair closed all Honolulu-bound lanes for the weekend, according to a DOT news release at the time.
The Pali Highway is expected to reopen in August. Except for one-way contraflow traffic during the morning and evening weekday rush hours, the Pali has been closed since landslides in late February caused damage that is taking months to repair.
Q: Can you catch leptospirosis more than once, or do you develop immunity?
A: Yes, you can be infected more than once. “Immunity is short-lived. There is no long-term immunity” from past infection, according to the state Department of Health, which posts prevention and treatment information on its website, at 808ne.ws/lepto.
Hawaii accounts for about half of all leptospirosis cases reported annually in the United States. The bacterial disease is most common in warm climates, and one way it spreads to humans is when they swim in freshwater pools, ponds or streams that are contaminated by the urine of an infected animal.
Symptoms range from mild to severe. Common symptoms include fever, headache, chills, sweating, muscle aches, painful eyes, vomiting and sometimes a rash. The worst cases may be fatal, having caused irreparable organ failure.
There is no preventative vaccine approved for use in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Mahalo
On May 2, the transmission on our car failed and we were facing the terror of not being able to get to the side of the freeway, ever fearful of causing an accident, and enduring the evil looks of those having to get around us. We were in the lane next to the HOV lane, with flashers on, and having no luck changing lanes. Sadly, fear blocked out my making note of details I wish I could now recall, for there was an alert tour bus operator who saw our problem and assisted us by changing lanes and allowing us to move in front of the tour bus. This process was repeated until we were in the farthest right lane. … We were able only to toot our horn in appreciation for the protection and aid provided by the tour bus. This driver’s professionalism is a credit to safe driving and to the island’s aloha spirit. There are angels among us who are seldom recognized, and this tour operator ranks among them.
— Happy to be alive!
Mahalo
A belated big mahalo to the angel who found my lost envelope containing the payment for my cable bill and took care of it. I was very relieved and happy when I learned that my account had been credited. Thank you!
— Grateful senior
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.
