Sick building stifles Maui planners
By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau
WAILUKU, Maui — When land-use and building plans examiner Mac Aquinde arrived at the Maui County Planning Department early Feb. 20, the air conditioner was turned off, having been serviced the day before. So naturally he turned it on.
Timothy Hurley • The Honolulu Advertiser
What blew out at him changed his life.
Maui County building plans examiner Mac Aquinde was diagnosed with asthma after being exposed to pollutants in the Kalana Paku'i annex in February.
Within 15 minutes, he was coughing, his eyes were red and watery and his head ached. Within an hour he went home, sleeping until the next day, when he went to his doctor with chest pains and a variety of respiratory problems. The doctor sent him to the emergency room, thinking he might be having a heart attack.
Aquinde, a physically fit 53-year-old who lifted weights and went to the gym often, eventually was examined by a pulmonary specialist in Honolulu and learned he had acquired asthma.
"I was very active," he said. "But now I don't go to the gym anymore. I get totally out of breath."
When the air conditioning was turned on in February after servicing, it not only blew an ill wind within the Kalana Paku'i annex, causing allergic reactions and other symptoms in numerous employees, but also triggered a chain reaction of events that resulted in the extended closure of the former police station.
There's no telling how long the building will be closed. County officials are waiting for recommendations from the state Department of Health and an environmental consultant on what to do next after numerous active fertile colonies of a mold were found last week above the old building's ceiling tiles.
The Maui County Council and Mayor James "Kimo'' Apana have agreed to allocate $500,000 in the 2001-2002 budget to rehabilitate the building and find temporary quarters for the displaced 80 employees in the Planning Department and the Land Use & Codes Administration.
But what the ultimate cost will be, no one really knows, said Karlynn Kawahara, Maui County information officer.
Following multiple testing by INALAB, a Honolulu environmental consultant, and an analysis by the state Department of Health, the initial odors were believed to be linked to volatile compounds from a paint used on the air-conditioning ducts.
Timothy Hurley • The Honolulu Advertiser
But while it appeared the problem would dissipate in a few weeks, subsequent remedial work unearthed mold and fungi.
Maui County planners work in a cramped temporary office with just one telephone. Other employees are scattered around Wailuku, in offices with inadequate computers, telephones and other support equipment.
All molds have the potential to affect health, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Molds can produce allergens that can trigger allergic reactions or asthma attacks in people allergic to mold. Others are known to produce potent toxins or irritants.
Illness was never a major problem before the air-conditioning duct was painted, said Land Use & Codes Administration chief Ralph Nagamine.
Kawahara said the mold problem may be linked to the air-conditioning system of the old building, which is listed as a National Historic Site. A mechanical engineer examined the system Wednesday, she said, and officials are awaiting results and recommendations.
If the air conditioning needs to be replaced, she said, it could take months to remove the old system and put in a new one, and county officials are now preparing to find new or additional office space for the affected departments.
In the meantime, employees are scattered about Wailuku, squeezed into temporary offices with inadequate computers, telephones and other support equipment.
"It's very stressful and demoralizing," Nagamine said. "Our staff is unable to perform at a level to which they are used to."
Planners are in three different areas of the county's main building, Kalana O Maui, adjacent to Kalana Paku'i. One group of seven planners shares a small room on the sixth floor with only one outside telephone line. They abide by a self-imposed 1:30-to-3 p.m. "quiet time" to allow work to get done.
Aquinde, the man who bore the brunt of the initial air-conditioning blast, has returned to work, but he says his active life has been impaired. He has trouble breathing and he must carry an inhaler.
Planner Julie Higa still feels lingering health effects and must clear her throat often. She said she would be reluctant to return to her former workplace, unless officials can convince her they've done everything they can to cleanse the building.
Higa said the county hasn't done a good job handling the situation so far.
But Lee Matsui, senior agent for the Hawai'i Government Employees Association on Maui, said he feels the county has taken extra precautions.
"We tried to do what we could to take care of the problem," Kawahara said. "These are our employees and they are important to us."
