'No phone zone' relief in sight

By Will Hoover
Advertiser Leeward O'ahu Writer

Wai'anae Coast residents are cautiously optimistic about improved prospects for getting phones in the 8-mile "no phone zone" between Makaha and Ka'ena Point, where cell phones don't work and pay phones don't exist.

Jordan welcomed news that the state will install two emergency phones in the area and that a major wireless phone company will consider installing an antenna in the affected area.

"I'll be happier when I actually see it happen," Jordan said. "This is something people here have been talking about for a long, long time."

In previous comments, Jordan has called the affected area — heavily used by fishers, divers, surfers and other water-sports enthusiasts — "an accident waiting to happen" because there is no way to make an emergency call there. Pay phones have been removed because they were too often vandalized, and no wireless company was willing to put in an antenna.

During a question-and-answer session at a Nov. 5 community forum held by Gov. Linda Lingle, Wai'anae Boat Harbor master William Aila asked what could be done. Lack of telephone capabilities between Makaha and Ka'ena Point, he said, is a public-safety concern.

"Once you pass Kea'au Beach Park, there are no phones," said Aila, who once drove five miles in order to inform authorities about a missing diver in the region.

In response to Aila's questions, Peter Young, director of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, said the state has appropriated money for two emergency phones to be installed in the 8-mile stretch.

"One will be installed near the guard shack at Yokohama Beach (Keawa'ula Bay)," said Young. "And one outside the guard shack at Makua Range. These have been authorized and will be installed."

Deborah Ward, DLNR information specialist, confirmed Friday that the state is working on the phone project but she couldn't say when it would be completed.

Michael Bagley, Verizon Wireless director of public policy for the Western region, said the company will consider putting a cell-phone antenna in the area.

"It sounds like the concerns for doing so are worth looking into," Bagley said Friday. "I can't make a commitment without looking at it. But, we would be willing to have discussions with officials to see what's possible."

Bagley said the fact that the affected area is vast and virtually uninhabited would not prohibit the company from installing an antenna. He did say matters might be complicated because much of the land in question is owned by the military. But Bagley reiterated that something still might be worked out.

The military has expressed a willingness to offer assistance. In the summer of 2002, following news reports about the "no phone zone," the Air Force set up a special public emergency phone at the guard shack at its Ka'ena Point Satellite Tracking Station.

Jordan said that the state's two additional emergency phones will be installed sometime this year at a cost of about $80,000 and will probably be connected to the military's land lines. Those lines, she said, are superior to the public land lines to the area, which are in disrepair and would cost more than $200,000 to fix.

Aila, heartened to learn about the state's plans, was doubly excited by Bagley's comments.

"We are always happy to hear from responsible corporate partners in the community," Aila said. "We've all got a cell phone. So, anything we can do to help them increase communications in that area will be of benefit to everyone."