Floods Batter Hawaii; 5,500 Evacuated as Dam Failure Feared
– Hello. Muddy floodwaters from heavy rains flooded streets, blew homes off their foundations, engulfed vehicles and prompted evacuation orders for thousands of residents in towns north of Honolulu on Friday as officials warned of the possible failure of a 120-year-old dam.
Emergency sirens blared along Oahu’s North Shore, where rising waters damaged homes in a community famous worldwide for surfing. Honolulu officials told residents Friday morning to leave the area downstream of the Wahiawa dam, which has long been known to be vulnerable, saying the dam “faces imminent risk of failure.”
Honolulu spokesman Ian Scheuring said there were no reports of deaths or injuries, but some homes were swept away. He said crews searched for stranded people by air and sea, but those efforts were hampered by people using personal drones to capture images of the flood.
Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said at an afternoon news conference that dozens, if not hundreds, of homes were damaged but officials could not fully assess the devastation. Approximately 5,500 people were under evacuation orders.
“There is no doubt that the damage so far has been catastrophic,” he said.
Blangiardi said officials are confident in the durability of the dams on the island, but it is difficult to predict how much rain will come and what it might do.
The National Guard and the Honolulu Fire Department airlifted 72 children and adults attending a spring break youth camp at Our Lady of Kea’au retreat on Oahu’s west shore, according to city and camp officials. The mayor said the camp was on high ground but authorities did not want to leave them there.
St. Louis, who owns recreational property on West Oahu. Kimberly RY Vierra, a spokeswoman for St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawai’i, said floodwaters had blocked the entrance road to the camp.
On Maui, officials issued an evacuation advisory for some Lahaina neighborhoods after nearby storage basins approached capacity. Some of these neighborhoods burned in the massive wildfire that destroyed much of Lahaina in 2023.
Authorities have been monitoring dam levels since last week’s heavy rain that dumped heavy rain across the state, leaving roads and homes flooded. After the worst, a similar but weaker storm was forecast to bring more rain this weekend.
“It’s going to be a very eventful day,” Hawaii Governor Josh Green said in his social media post.
Much of the state was under a flood watch while Haleiwa and Waialua in northern Oahu were under a flash flood warning, according to the National Weather Service.
A shelter at Waialua High and Middle School was evacuated due to flooding, Scheuring said. There were approximately 185 people and 50 pets there who had to be moved to another evacuation center, but by noon 54 people were still left at the shelter.
Parts of Oahu received 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) of rain overnight, with the ground becoming even more saturated following last weekend’s storm. Kaala, the island’s highest peak, reached nearly 16 inches (40 cm) in height the other day, the NWS said.
Winter storm systems known as “Kona lows,” in which winds blowing from the south or southwest brought moisture-laden air, were responsible for the flooding. Experts say the intensity and frequency of heavy rains in Hawaii are increasing due to human-caused global warming.
The aging Wahiawa dam is a concern every time it rains, Waialua resident Kathleen Pahinui told The Associated Press in a telephone interview as she prepared to evacuate to a friend’s home on high ground.
“Just pray for us,” he said. “We understand more rain is coming.”
The state said the dam has a “high potential for danger” and that a failure would “likely result in the loss of human life.”
The earthen dam was built in 1906 to increase sugar production for the Waialua Agricultural Company, which later became a subsidiary of the Dole Food Company. It was rebuilt after a collapse in 1921.
The state has sent Dole four notices of dam-related deficiencies since 2009 and five years ago fined the company $20,000 for failing to fix safety deficiencies in a timely manner, records show.
Dole then offered to donate the dam, reservoir, and ditch system to the state in exchange for an agreement to repair the spillway to meet and maintain the state’s dam safety standards.
The state passed legislation allowing the purchase of the dam in 2023. It also provided $5 million to purchase the spillway and $21 million to repair and expand it to comply with dam safety requirements. However, the transfer was not completed. The state board is expected to vote on the purchase next week.
“The dam continues to operate as designed with no signs of damage,” Dole said in an emailed statement.
The state regulates 132 dams across Hawaii, many of which were built as part of irrigation systems for the sugarcane industry, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers’ 2019 infrastructure report.
