Posted at 6:56 p.m., Monday, April 3, 2006
Diamond Head Road to be closed for three weeks
Advertiser Staff
The state will close part of Diamond Head Road for three weeks beginning tomorrow morning during work to remove rocks at risk of falling.The road, including some of its scenic lookouts, will be closed to vehicles and pedestrians 24 hours a day from the middle lookout above Kuilei Cliffs beach Park to the intersection of Diamond Head Road and Kahala Avenue.
The closure will begin at 7 a.m. tomorrow.
Recent severe weather triggered a rockfall last week, and the hillside remains unstable above the third lookout, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources said.
Local traffic will be accommodated. Buses should avoid using the road.
"The loosened material creates hazardous conditions and will be removed from the face of the monument to ensure public health and safety," DLNR chairman Peter Young said in a statement.
"DLNR understands the inconvenience imposed by the project and appreciates the public's patience," Young said.
The state also announced that one lane of Kailua Road heading into Kailua will be closed indefinitely beginning at 7 tonight because of the unstable hillside above the roadway.
The stretch of road between St. John's Lutheran Church and Hamakua Drive had been the site of three landslides during the recent heavy rains. A state inspector late this afternoon noticed some overhanging material, prompting the state Department of Transportation to close the right lane as a precaution.
DOT spokesman Scott Ishikawa said officials feared that more rain could cause the material to loosen and fall. Another inspection will be made Tuesday morning to determine whether the lane could be safely reopen, Ishikawa said.
