Beaches to reopen after spill
By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer
Popular beaches from Point Panic to Sand Island to Ke'ehi Lagoon are expected to reopen today after being contaminated last week in one of the largest Honolulu sewage spills on record.
Initial estimates placed Thursday night's spill into Honolulu Harbor, Nu'uanu Stream and Kapalama Canal at 4.6 million gallons, but the state Health Department has since determined that it totaled 7.5 million gallons.
Since the spill, swimming has been prohibited from Kaka'ako Waterfront Park to the reef runway at Honolulu Airport, but the recent heavy rain has diluted the spill and put the beaches on the verge of being reopened, said Libby Stoddard, an engineer in the department's Clean Water Branch.
"Tests Friday at the spill site into the harbor showed 14 million colony-forming units for fecal chloroform per 100 millimeters," Stoddard said yesterday. "We consider that raw sewage. The following day it was only 3,800 — a very dramatic drop."
By comparison, an area not affected by the sewage spill on Nu'uanu Stream tested Saturday morning showed more than 2,000 parts for fecal chloroform per 100 millimeters, which is just from normal runoff, she said.
If test results show a continued drop in fecal chloroform in the contaminated area, the beach restriction could be lifted today, Stoddard said.
A power failure Thursday night at the city's Hart Street pumping station in Iwilei also affected another station on Awa Street, causing raw sewage to spill at both locations, city officials said. At about 8 p.m. Thursday, a short-circuit in the plant's electrical system disabled pumps that transfer raw sewage to the Sand Island treatment facility. The problem also affected the Hart Street plant's emergency generator.
The spill was stopped by 9:30 a.m. Friday.
A stray cat triggered the power outage when it crawled into an electrical panel, which shorted out and started a fire.
"The pump station is currently being refurbished, so there is construction going on," said Stoddard. "The poor little wet thing was looking for a warm, dry place. I don't see negligence on the city's part."
The largest previous recent spill occurred in March 2002, when an estimated 3 million gallons of untreated sewage flowed into Ke'ehi Lagoon over 15 hours.
Last week's spill sent sewage into Honolulu Harbor near piers 16 and 36. Health Department spokeswoman Laura Lott said the Honolulu harbor master told her that the currents moved much of the effluent away from the popular Ala Moana and Waikiki beaches and toward 'Ewa.
Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.
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