Raw sewage flows into harbor

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

A major sewer line that serves nearly half of urban Honolulu ruptured yesterday at Sand Island, sending thousands of gallons of raw sewage into Honolulu Harbor.

The city's wastewater chief said it probably will take at least a week to repair the pipe, a force main that is 66 inches in diameter. The pipe is 20 feet underground at water's edge and is one of two force mains under Honolulu Harbor that run from the Ala Moana pumping station to the Sand Island Wastewater Treatment Plant.

"This is a pretty big break," said Frank Doyle, city Environmental Services director. "If we're out of here in a week, I'm going to be happy. So it's a big job."

The break was detected at about 9 a.m. yesterday when crews at the Sand Island state park discovered a marshy area near the mouth to the harbor as pressure at the treatment plant began to drop. Doyle said last night that he did not know how much raw sewage spilled on land and how much went into the ocean.

But he said about a half-dozen pump trucks with capacities of 2,000 to 6,000 gallons were lined up last night to continually vacuum up the spill on land.

"Our main priority now is to contain what we have as much as we can," Doyle said. "Our priority is the ocean. We want to keep as much from going in as we possibly can."

Doyle said he did not know what caused the pipe to rupture, but he said it may be related to a "transition point" where the 66-inch main under the harbor connects with a 78-inch main on land.

By 11:15 a.m. yesterday, sewage was diverted from the 66-inch main to an older 52-inch main that also runs under the harbor. Both lines connect the treatment plant with the Ala Moana pump station, which serves an area ranging from Sand Island to East Honolulu, excluding Hawai'i Kai.

Doyle said the broken pipe is about 22 years old, while the 52-inch main that is doing the work for two pipes is about 50 years old. Although the large pipe was shut down, residual sewage continued to leak out of the ground throughout the day.

A temporary 10-inch pipe was to be installed overnight to help with the peak-flow periods, Doyle said. The repair is being done by city crews and private contractor Hawaiian Dredging.

Doyle said he didn't know how much it will cost to repair the break.

"It's not something we can fool around with. We gotta get it taken care of and get it done and that's what we're going to do," Doyle said.

The Sand Island treatment plant processes about 70 million gallons a day. During storms or heavy rains, wastewater flow to the plant can reach between 170 million and 200 million gallons a day, Doyle said.

He said he didn't believe yesterday's spill was related to the recent storms.

The heavy rains have caused problems with the island's sewage treatment system, particularly on the Windward side where nearly a quarter-million gallons of sewage spilled onto roadways and into the ocean last week.

"This is on a much, much grander scale over here," Doyle said of the Sand Island spill. "Every time you have a spill, it's a problem. Unfortunately, this is a big line.

"It's going to be complicated. It's going to cost us more money.

It's going to be over a longer period of time."

Doyle said surfers in the area were told to leave the water soon after the spill was detected. Warning signs were posted from Point Panic to Ke'ehi Lagoon, and the waters will be tested for contamination.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8025.