Grappling with boil water advisory, residents on Navy system say they’re ‘not surprised’

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Some 93,000 users on the Navy’s water line remain under a boil water and conservation notice following main breaks Friday.

In a media availability, Cmdr. Mark Sohaney of Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam said crews don’t have an estimated time of repair but anticipate having more information by Sunday morning.

“We are moving at the speed of safety, slow as smooth and smooth as safe,” said Sohaney.

90,000 under boil water advisory following main breaks on Pearl-Harbor Hickam line

On Saturday, there was an excavation going on at the 36-inch main break in Waiau, which Sohaney said is a complex site.

“It’s taking time, it’s very complex,” said Sohaney. “It’s just like any municipality, right? These systems are big and when something like this occurs, you’ve got old infrastructure, new infrastructure, very complex and challenging.”

“And we just want to get it right.”

The commander said the second break at Salt Lake Boulevard and Namur Road is isolated and secured. While the third break at the Joint Base Annex is minor.

These main breaks forced the closure of schools, child development centers and businesses on Friday.

Sohaney said the focus Saturday is understanding what Monday morning looks like.

“So, we’ve got my staff reaching out to all tenants and all users of our water to make sure we understand the impacts,” said Sohaney. “Right now, I would anticipate we’re going to drive to kind of a mission essential personnel until further notice.”

“I think it should become a very big priority to get an understanding of what it’s going to take to, quote on quote, repair, the water breaks that have happened,” said Amanda Zawieruszynski who lives in Halsey Terrace. “It’s very interesting that they’ve had three water breaks within a matter of one day.”

Zawieruszynski picked up water from the Navy Exchange water distribution site on Saturday.

She said they haven’t used their dishwasher since November 2021.

“This is what we use to wash the dishes,” said Zawieruszynski while holding up a bucket. “That’s why I said to you, we’re not surprised that we’re in another situation, unfortunately.”

For any questions or concerns, Sohaney said to call the Emergency Operations Center which is open 24/7 at (808) 448-2570.

Copyright 2022 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.