Harbors

The Importance of Being Prepared to Respond to Incidents Similar to Hurricane Laura By: Gary Moniz From various media

Lake Charles, Louisiana is not a lake in its true sense, but a congested residential, business and industrial area. Lake Charles is about 30 miles inland from the sea coast and Cameron, Louisiana the hurricane’s landfall center. To think that the storm surge may approach 20 feet in some areas and moving 40 miles or so inland is staggering. Media reports indicate that many structures, roads, and utilities have already been damaged, some even destroyed.

Scientist predict that the Central Pacific will experience a near average number of hurricanes this season. What remains unknown is if one or more of these anticipated hurricanes will intensify and make a direct hit on Hawai’i.

We are still in the middle of our 2020 Hurricane season and is important to remain prepared and ready to respond to a possible devastating storm like Hurricane Laura. Please remember Hurricane Iniki, 1992 and the impacts that this hurricane caused Hawaii even though the entire island chain was not directly in the path of the eye.

Hurricane Iniki attained tropical storm status on September 8, 1992 and further intensified into a hurricane the next day. After turning north, Iniki struck the island of Kauaʻi on September 11 at peak intensity; it had winds of 145 mph and reached Category 4 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale. It had recorded wind gusts of 225 as evidenced by an anemometer that was found blown into the forest during clean up. It was the first hurricane to hit the state since Hurricane Iwa in the 1982 season, and the first major hurricane since Hurricane Dot in 1959. Iniki dissipated on September 13 about halfway between Hawaii and Alaska.

Iniki caused around $3.1 billion (1992 USD) in damage and six deaths, making it the costliest natural disaster on record in the state, and the second-costliest Pacific hurricane on record. At the time, Iniki was among the costliest United States hurricanes. The storm struck just 18 days after Hurricane Andrew, the costliest tropical cyclone ever at the time, struck Florida.

The Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC) failed to issue tropical cyclone warnings and watches 24 hours in advance. Despite the lack of early warning, only six deaths ensued. Damage was greatest on Kauaʻi, where the hurricane destroyed more than 1,400 houses and severely damaged more than 5,000. Though not directly in the path of the eye, Oʻahu experienced moderate damage from wind and storm surge.

Hawaii Emergency Management Agency located at dod.hawaii.gov/hiema as well as the following individual County, Emergency Management Departments offer useful and important information relating to hurricanes and other disasters. I urge you to review their information products and formulate your response to what may be a major threat to you and your loved ones.

1. Honolulu County: www.honolulu.gov/dem 2. Kauai County: www.kauai.gov/kema 3. Maui County: www.mauicounty.gov/70 4. Hawaii County: www.hawaiicounty.gov/departments/civil-defense.

Harbors

Harbors Maui District Welcomes Harbors Agent Manma

By: Duane Kim

Please join us in welcoming Negus M. Manna to our DOT Harbors Ohana as our Harbors Maui District’s Harbor Agent III for Kaumalapau Harbor (Lanai).

“Manna,” as he prefers to be called, joined HDOT on September 1st, and currently resides in Lanai City. He is a graduate of UH Manoa with a Bachelor’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Sustainable Studies. Manna previously worked for Pulama Lanai, the United States Coast Guard and Kirby Offshore Marine. During his 9 years in the USCG, Manna was assigned to both Station Honolulu (Oahu) and Station Maalaea (Maui) with experiences in federal law enforcement, environmental protection, emergency response and boat handling. Manna carries a USCG 100-ton Masters Merchant Mariner Credential and a Commercial Driver’s License Class B, and successfully completed training in the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER) program.