It's been that way since the old orange lifeguard tower blew down five weeks ago. It had become unstable when its concrete base cracked from erosion.

Nearly a year and a half since the city received two new lifeguard towers, they've been sitting unused in the parking lot of Koko Head District Park, not on the beach. One of the towers is destined for Makapu'u, one of the most popular bodyboarding beaches on the island, the other for Ka Waena on the North Shore.

"Our guards still are on duty, even though the conditions are not perfect," said Capt. Kevin Allen, who works in the East Honolulu District, which covers Maunalua Bay to Kailua. "Our guys are willing to go through the hardships because they know there's light at the end of the tunnel."

Kyle Lee, a bodyboarder who comes to Makapu'u regularly to surf, said he wants the lifeguards to have a permanent working environment, one that will give them a better view of the surf and the swimmers.

Lifeguard Kawika Eckart walks past what will become the foundation of a new lifeguard tower being built at Makapu'u. A series of delays and problems with the construction site have compelled lifeguards at Makapu'u to watch the beach from an improvised, temporary shelter. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

The city began replacing the old orange wooden lifeguard towers with sand-colored fiberglass models in a million-dollar project six years ago. The original plan called for all 30 towers to be installed by next year. The city has erected 17 and must install 13 more, including the one at Makapu'u.

The Makapu'u tower has been quite a challenge because of severe erosion along the beach. City officials plan to install the new tower closer to the cliff and bring down water lines so it can grow naupaka, a native plant, to prevent erosion. Right now, the only signs of the future tower are steel reinforcement bars sticking up and dribbles of concrete down the hillside.

The city is paying Punalu'u Builders $58,000 to install the $27,000 tower.

"Of all the towers we're doing around the island, this is the most challenging," said Jim Howe, city lifeguard operations chief. "We want to make sure all the guards have appropriate working conditions to do their job."

At Makapu'u, the contractor will soon make a third attempt to pour the concrete base. It was to have happened Wednesday but has been delayed again, Allen said. The new lifeguard tower, surrounded by weeds, sits at the far end of Koko Head District Park parking lot, where it has been for more than a year, Howe said.

The lion's share of lifeguard towers yet to be installed will go to the Leeward Coast, Howe said. Before the new towers can be ordered and construction contracts awarded, city officials must inspect the proposed locations.

The new towers include tinted windows to provide protection against the sun's ultraviolet rays and keep lifeguards out of the wind and rain. The new towers also are taller than the old orange ones and are cooler as well.

"They're a much better working environment," Howe said. "The guards certainly appreciate it. And they're able to do their job better, being less exposed to the elements, and they're cooler so they help with concentration, especially during the heat of summer."

Body surfer Max Shields was applying sunscreen Tuesday while focusing on the waves, not on the fact that the lifeguards were in a temporary shelter. An infrequent visitor to the beach, Shields, a Kane'ohe resident, said that the delays in construction and the temporary nature of the lifeguard station were not really a concern for him.

"It's the tourists or people who don't know how to take care of themselves that would be affected by the lifeguards' working conditions," Shields said. "I can take care of myself."