High-rise fire hose test canceled

By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer

There's a kink in the Honolulu Fire Department's plan to demonstrate its ability to fight a high-rise fire.

The department had to cancel a demonstration scheduled for this morning because of liability concerns between the department and its 44-story host, the Ohana Maile Sky Court in Waikiki, said Capt. Richard Soo, fire department spokesman.

"What we are looking for is a building that is 25 stories or more," Soo said. "That would be one that would demonstrate to the public what we can do."

The high-rise demonstration was a response to concerns raised last month by Battalion Chief Jim Skellington, who said the department did not test its hoses at pressures needed to pump water to the 30th floor of a hotel.

Fire officials defended their testing after Skellington discussed his concerns, noting that hoses are factory tested to 800 pounds per square inch and regularly tested here at 400 pounds per square inch — enough to put out fires in a 40-story building.

The demonstration would have allowed the department to show the public and the media that its hoses could do the job.

But insurance and safety concerns for hotel guests, workers and firefighters, as well as possible water damage to the building, killed the exercise, Soo said.

"That is part of the problem with drilling in high buildings," Soo said. "We have to go and look for someplace else. When it will be rescheduled, I don't know."

Fire Chief Attlio Leonardi said the public has no reason to worry about the department's abilities.

"We do test our hoses," he said. "Every year we test all of our hoses and our companies in Waikiki and in major high-rise areas. They drill all the time."