On this week’s episode of the One O‘ahu Podcast, Department of Facility Maintenance Deputy Director Warren Mamizuka joins host Brandi Higa to discuss the department’s response during the recent Kona Low storms, the collaboration with our State partners, and seeing the community come out in force.
Kona Low 2
On the night of March 19, a Kona Low storm system brought heavy rain and several parts of O‘ahu experienced flash flooding. In Waialua, a number of homes were swept off their foundations and carried down stream near Otake Camp.
“What our concerns were (at the time) were roads flooding and also, our Waialua Corporation Yard,” explained Mamizuka on this week’s episode of the podcast. “It’s actually in a flood zone. So, we had to relocate all our vehicles, all our equipment, refuse trucks, hop tows, loaders, dump trucks. So, we kept the most important equipment that we would need the next day after the storm.”
DFM maintains City roads, bridges, and public buildings. The department was critical in the days and weeks following the Kona Low storms when it came to clearing mud and debris from public and privately-owned areas.
Unprecedented Collaboration
Early on, DFM Deputy Director Mamizuka contacted Hawai‘i Department of Transportation Director Ed Sniffen to work in collaboration to clear waterways to keep water moving from already saturated neighborhoods.
“I think moving forward you’ll see more collaboration between state and city agencies,” added Mamizuka.
Areas where this unprecedented teamwork came together was at Kaukonahua Stream. State and City workers came together for months on end to remove hundreds of truckloads of mud and debris each day. This work was to remove a massive island that had formed from the flash flooding and to open-up the streamway to prevent future flooding.
Community Support
In the hours after the rain started to fall on March 19, and in the days after, neighbors poured in from across the island to help those affected by the catastrophic flooding.
“I was in awe,” reacted Mamizuka. “The Rita family, they came out (on) the night of the storm, and they started with their loaders. They had this heavy equipment and they can get into some high water areas, you know, rescuing people, helping HFD, helping HPD. And the next day, longshoremen came up, Brandon Wolff, Kale Ornellas, you know, these guys were all there.”
If you need assistance or are looking for ways to help following the Kona Low storms, visit OneOahu.org
