Question: Is anybody else asking about a very loud pulsating noise near Queen’s Gate? This continued on-and-off from Wednesday night into early Thursday. At first I thought it was an extra loud car alarm but I don’t think it was. Late Wednesday night, I walked down to Kalama Valley Community Park thinking it could be the emergency siren there, but it wasn’t. Thursday morning I checked Oahu’s emergency siren map and the two other closest sirens are listed as working so I don’t think it was them. I am wondering what it was, what it meant and whether it is going to happen again?
Answer: The intermittent alarm came from a malfunctioning emergency warning siren at Sandy Beach that had been tampered with, said state Rep. Joe Gedeon, R-Dist. 18, whose Hawaii Kai district includes Queen’s Gate and Kalama Valley; we heard from readers in those areas.
Gedeon received this explanation from the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, which he had called Thursday to follow up on the noise nuisance his constituents were posting about on social media. HIEMA staff were expected to inspect the siren Thursday and make repairs as needed, Gedeon said by telephone, reiterating a message he posted online.
We also called and emailed HIEMA’s communications office, asking whether it’s known who tampered with the siren, whether it can be fixed, how long any needed repairs would take and whether area residents should expect the vandalized siren to go off again. A spokesperson did not respond by deadline Thursday.
The alarm at Sandy Beach Park is part of the all-hazards statewide outdoor warning siren system, which the government can activate during natural or human-caused disasters, including tsunamis, hurricanes, dam breaches, flooding, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, terrorist threats or hazardous material incidents, according to the HIEMA website. “If you hear a siren outside of a scheduled test, check your radio, television or cell phone for emergency information and instructions by official authorities,” it says. Some readers who heard the siren late Wednesday night did that, concluding that it must have been a repeated false alarm because no instructions were issued.
As the reader said, the public dashboard at 808ne.ws/3UkdwDX lists the Sandy Beach Park siren as operational, but the website has not been updated since Oct. 13, and may not reflect the current status. Of 414 sirens statewide, 368 were listed as operational, 14 as needing standard maintenance, 30 as needing maintenance by a contractor and two as being beyond repair.
Q: I am trying to help a friend whose husband passed away. She says she can’t get his Social Security because she is still working. Is that true?
A: Your friend may be able to work and receive survivor benefits based on her husband’s work record, depending on her age and earnings, according to the U.S. Social Security Administration. Please direct her to ssa.gov/survivor for detailed information, or she can call 1-800-772-1213.
Mahalo
After an awesome “Honouliuli Concert” at the Hawaii Theater, five Mililani aunties went to Liliha Bakery in Pearl City for dinner. We ordered a lot of food and were ready to leave when our waiter said that our bill was already paid by an anonymous person. What? We were in shock! It was a big bill and the waiter refused to tell us who it was but we guessed it was a young couple sitting next to us. We don’t know them but we are so touched by their generosity. Of course, we will definitely pay it forward and we say a big Mahalo to that wonderful young couple. — From five Mililani Aunties: Rene, Lani, Luana, Lilette and Georgiana!
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