The Hawaii County Department of Water Supply is continuing to assess and repair damage to the water system infrastructure in the Na‘alehu-Wai‘ohinu area caused by the catastrophic rainfall and flooding last month from Hurricane Lala.

Read more Carvalho lives up to the hype for UH

The Hawaii County Department of Water Supply is continuing to assess and repair damage to the water system infrastructure in the Na‘alehu-Wai‘ohinu area caused by the catastrophic rainfall and flooding last month from Hurricane Lala.

DWS has restored water service to most customers in the Na‘alehu–Wai‘ohinu water system. However, significant damage to waterlines and other infrastructure has left portions of the system without water.

DWS is prioritizing efforts to restore service to the remaining affected customers in Wai‘ohinu Homestead and portions of the South Point Road service areas, representing about 60 accounts.

“The top priority right now is to repair the waterline that comes down from Mountain House Spring,” DWS Deputy Kawika Uyehara said Thursday. “It was one of our sources that we used prior to the storm, and we need to repair the transmission line from that source. The source itself is still intact, we just need to repair the waterline in several places so we can get that source back into our existing water system.”

DWS has secured a contractor to expedite restoration of the Mountain House Spring source and associated infrastructure, which Uyehara described as a critical water source for the affected area.

“It’s up in the slopes above Wai‘ohinu town, so access is an issue, because the floods also washed out the roads,” Uyehara said. “So, the first order is to get access to the site of the damaged water infrastructure, so we can get equipment, materials and labor up there so we can start the repairs.”

Asked how long those repairs are expected to take, Uyehara replied, “We don’t have a timeframe right now.”

Read more Kona earthquake gets federal disaster declaration

Those repairs are expected to include replacement and repair of damaged waterlines, including pipelines up to 12 inches in diameter, and constructing structures to support and elevate replacement waterlines above drainage channels that were washed out by floodwaters.

In addition to the Mountain House Spring restoration, DWS will address significant pipeline and road damage between the two highest-elevation Wai‘ohinu water tanks.

Customers in the Na‘alehu-Wai‘ohinu area remain “under a precautionary water-boil notice right now,” Uyehara said.

Because of the extent of the damage, including washed-out roads, drainage channels and waterlines, some repairs will require substantial construction and coordination. DWS will provide additional information as the repair scope, scheduling, and contractor availability are confirmed.

While permanent repairs take place, DWS has instituted temporary measures to assist customers who remain without water, including deployment of potable water tankers to the Wai‘ohinu Homestead and South Point Road areas for customers’ use and, where feasible, installation of temporary waterlines from the Wai‘ohinu Homestead area to the Wai‘ohinu Houselots tank.

Customers in the Na‘alehu-Wai‘ohinu area are asked to conserve water as recovery from Lala continues. According to DWS, additional water-use restrictions could be implemented to help maintain available water supplies and system stability while emergency repairs are being made.

Read more UPDATE: Green declares state of emergency, prepositions resources ahead of tropical cyclones

Email John Burnett at [email protected].