Fuel pipes near aquifer risky, too

Wait, I have to say this out loud to myself as I cannot believe what I am understanding. Are they saying that the fuel pipes run through the same access tunnel system as the aquifer and water pipes? Or how else did the fuel get into the Red Hill water shaft and into our aquifer so quickly?

Well now, Ernie Lau, the Honolulu Board of Water Supply’s chief engineer, confirms the same.

So not only do we have ongoing leaking from the fuel tanks that seep through the ground and into the aquifer, we have pipes that carry fuel that can break/leak/have operator error and go directly into the aquifer. No need to bother going through the ground; it goes directly down the tunnel into the aquifer. Brilliant. And the Navy officials state they can guarantee fixing it, and it won’t happen. Right. What a nightmare.

Lois Berger

Aiea Heights

Navy, defuel fuel tanks quickly

The Navy has already deactivated two of its 20 Red Hill fuel storage tanks, four others are currently inoperable, and many others have not been inspected for 20 to 40 years. Consequently, we ask: How much fuel is actually stored in the Navy’s underground tanks? Definitely not 250 million gallons, but perhaps closer to 185 million gallons.

Bless Par Hawaii for having the capacity to store 74 million gallons, or about 40% of the Navy’s fuel. The Navy could also store fuel at Guam’s Naval Base Guam and Andersen AFB, and on a fleet of military tankers. Other storage opportunities may further exist at the Honolulu Harbor, the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, and Kaneohe’s Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

Navy, no more excuses. Defuel your Red Hill fuel tanks immediately!

Ed Uchida

Hawaii Kai

A tale of two stadiums

In the early 1970s, when it was clear that Honolulu Stadium on King Street simply could not be used for sports events much longer, the issue became where would a new stadium go and what would it look like.

Then-Gov. George Ariyoshi’s proposal was for one 50,000-seat stadium to be built in Halawa. It would be constructed of steel and feature large sections of seats that could be moved, changing the facility’s configuration so that baseball could be accommodated.

Meanwhile, Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi revealed his own plan: two separate facilities on that same Halawa property — one for football with a 50,000 capacity; the other for baseball seating 20,000. One parking lot would serve both facilities, which would be constructed of concrete, impervious to the weather.

The Ariyoshi version was selected, but which design was better? The “movable” sections have stopped moving. Professional baseball relocated to the mainland. The steel structure required expensive maintenance and now is no longer usable.

It’s quite clear: Frank Fasi was right. Again.

Jim Loomis

Haiku, Maui

Politicos ditch rights for mandates

Politicians must do something even if the “something” doesn’t work. Appearances are everything.

We are told that COVID-19 is a crisis even when the survival rate is 99+%. We are told that vaccines are the solution even if you can still catch and transmit COVID-19. Therapeutics that work in foreign countries to stop COVID-19 are not allowed in America. Natural immunity following recovery from COVID-19 is not recognized. Medical experts say that variants emerge from the vaccinated, but politicians say that we have a pandemic of the unvaccinated.

Politicians have replaced liberty and civil rights with mandates under emergency authority for the good of the people. The real pandemic is widespread fear and isolation. When will the pandemic end?

Michael Lee

Wilhelmina Rise

Illegal fireworks in so many areas

Thank you, Jim Cook of Aiea, for your letter (“Firework bombs annoy, disrupt neighborhoods,” Star-Advertiser, Dec. 28). For “Aiea” substitute the Ala Moana/Hobron Lane/Ena Road area, and you have my situation exactly.

On Dec. 25, the fireworks didn’t stop until 1:30 a.m. I am beyond frustrated and annoyed.

Leslie Hayashi

Ala Wai

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