Updated at 7:45 a.m., Friday, August 24, 2007
Boulder bits airlifted out today in Moanalua Valley
Advertiser Staff
A helicopter will lift boulder fragments above a few homes in Moanalua Valley today, the last phase of a $309,000 Army Corps of Engineers project.
Contractor Prometheus Construction began the project Aug. 14. The project included putting in fencing and breaking up five boulders above homes on Ala Mahina Street. The contractor estimated the largest boulder was 15 to 20 tons, with the others about 3 tons.
Residents in five nearby homes will be evacuated during the airlift, which is scheduled for 9 to 11 a.m. Pacific Helicopters will lift the bags of rocks from the hillside to Tripler Army Medical Center grounds to be trucked away.
This is the second time a helicopter will be used to take boulders off the Moanalua hillside. Heavy rains in December 2003 led to landslides in the area. In July 2005, $1.4 million was spent to remove 50 boulders from 15 sites under Tripler Hospital.
Rep. Glenn Wakai and Sen. Daniel K. Inouye are attempting to secure another $6.5 million in federal funds to remove dangerous boulders identified on the Red Hill side of Moanalua Valley, according to a press release issued by Wakai's office.
