Updated at 2:39 p.m., Wednesday, November 1, 2006
Mud and debris creating Pali Highway 'safety hazard'
Advertiser Staff
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Mountain runoff crosses Maunawili Road
RICHARD AMBO I The Honolulu Advertiser
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O'ahu Civil Defense volunteer Phillip Kekai diverts traffic away from a closed-off section of Kapa'a Quarry Road
RICHARD AMBO I The Honolulu Advertiser
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Traffic backs up on the Pali Highway as it is diverted away from the town-bound direction due to a mudslide.
RICHARD AMBO I The Honolulu Advertiser
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A mudslide blocks the Pali Highway's Honolulu-bound tunnel. Officials use bulldozers to clear mud, rocks, trees and other debris strewn across the highway.
DEBORAH BOOKER I The Honolulu Advertiser
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A mudslide closes both directions of traffic along the Pali Highway
DEBORAH BOOKER I The Honolulu Advertiser
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Ongoing rain at the Pali Tunnels continues to send mud and debris across both the town-bound and Kailua-bound lanes of the Pali Highway, state Department of Transportation officials said.
The mudslide occurred at about 10:30 a.m. on the right hand side of the town-bound lanes, DOT spokesman Scott Ishikawa said, then continued to flow onto the Kailua-bound lanes.
"Right now, the rain's not letting up," Ishikawa said. "As long as it's not letting up, water, mud and debris will continue to flow onto the highway.
"It's really a safety hazard," he said. "Even if we clean it up, it's still a safety hazard because the mud is very slippery. It's Mother Nature's call at this point when she's going to let up on the rain."
