Department of Defense

Helicopters, hummers used in Molokai, Waianae, Pearl City

firefighting, evacuation missions

By 2nd Lt. Jeffrey D. Hickman and
Sgt. 1st Class Stephen M. Lum

“When we were needed, we were there,” the first words to the National Guard’s theme song has rung true this year. From the firefighting missions to the recent civilian evacuation during a hostage standoff, Hawaii National Guard members have been there to assist the community.

The Hawaii Army National Guard has helped county fire departments with the following brush fires:

Month	Location	Fires
February	Puna, Hawaii	2
July	Makakilo, Oahu	1
August	Molokai	1
September	Waianae, Oahu	1

Hawaii Guard assists with Pearl City standoff

Hawaii National Guard vehicles were pressed into service to assist civil authorities with a hostage standoff in Pearl City’s Pacific Palisades, Oct. 30. At the request of the Honolulu Police Department (HPD), the Hawaii Army National Guard dispatched an M-88 armored recovery vehicle and two kevlar (bullet-resistant material) humvees to the police staging area at Pearl City High School. The HPD was the lead agency on scene and the military vehicles were used in a defensive role.

Maj. Gen. Edward V. Richardson, the adjutant general, tasked the Hawaii Guard’s Counterdrug Office to coordinate the assistance with HPD. Lt. Col. Gervin Miyamoto and his staff were on the scene for the two-day standoff.

The humvees transported 30 of the grade school students from The Children’s House, a private school, to safe locations where they were reunited with their parents. The humvees also evacuated three area residents, who needed medical attention, from their homes.

The armored recovery vehicle was available if it became necessary to evacuate police negotiators and/or civilians from the area.

The use of National Guard personnel and vehicles for this operation was approved by Gov. BenjaminJ. Cayetano and the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C.

Chinooks fight Waianae coast fire

Two CH-47Ds loaded with fire buckets were dispatched from Wheeler to assist in fighting a brushfire on the Waianae coast, Sept 30.

The fire, which started at the Lualualei fence line, spread to Waianae Valley Road, endangering residential areas.

Hawaii Army National Guard Chinook helicopters completed 25 waterbucket drops, totaling 50,000 gallons of water.

Fire rages in Molokai

Firefighting has almost become a full-time mission for the UH-60 Blackhawk and CH-470 Chinook helicopter crews of the Hawaii Army National Guard. Two Black.hawks from Hilo and three Chinooks out of Wheeler Army Airfield were launched to assist civilian authorities battle the huge brushfire on the southern part of Molokai in August.

The fire, which was as large as four miles by six miles, burned more than 15,000 acres in three days. When the mission was over, the Hawaii Guard helicopters made 399 water drops, dumping more than 570,000 gallons of water on the Friendly Isle.

Maui County officials requested the aerial support after the brushfire began to threaten homes on Molokai. The county followed the procedures set up through our assistance to civil authorities agreement by making the request to the governor’s office, who tasked the adjutant general to use his resources to fight the fire. The Hawaii State Department of Defense’s Hawaii National Guard and State Civil Defense, who were already on standby alert, were pressed into action.

“That was one of the biggest fires we have helped to fight,” explained Lt. Col. Gary Hara, facility commander of the Hawaii Guard’s Army Aviation Support Facility #1. “Homes and properties were in the line of the fire, so some of the drops that were made were in very close proximity to the homes.”

A Chinook causes a 200 mph rotor wind when it hovers, so they can’t perform spot drops like the smaller helicopters. The winds generated could damage homes so fast runs above the fire line are done by the Chinooks to drop their water.

The strategy, teamwork and precision that it takes to execute a perfect water drop are amazing. The pilot flies the helicopter and needs to judge approach, speed, other aircraft, smoke, terrain, as well as location of fire, wind and ground obstacles. The copilot’s responsibilities include assisting the pilot with the flight instruments and the radio. One of the crew chiefs helps with the clearing of the aircraft and does cabin and ramp checks every half-hour. The other crew chief is located at the right cabin door, and his duties include helping the pilot with approaches to the fire lines and he gives the countdown to the flight engineer (3-2-I-release!). The flight engineer is the one who actually releases the water from the bucket, but he can only see directly out of the bottom of the helicopter, so communication and timing are crucial to get the water to fall on target.

Each Chinook is capable of carrying 2,000 gallons of water in an external water bucket. These fully loaded buckets weigh 16,000 pounds. Blackhawks are capable of handling 660 gallons of water at a time. The water buckets hang about 100 feet below the belly of the aircraft and are filled in the ocean and a reservoir. As for the drops, one-third of the water in the bucket is dropped on the fire; and, the remaining two-thirds are dropped where fire is going to burn.

“The fire looked like it was going to destroy some houses, so we needed to kill it before it got there,” said Chief Warrant Officer Wayne Umeda of Mililani. “It really created a sense of urgency.”

After three days of flights from Hilo and Wheeler, the air support from the National Guard was no longer needed.

The Chinooks flew to U.S. Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe to hot refuel. The hot refuel minimized the downtime but was tough on the flight crews who were able to rest only when the mission was complete for the day.

“It was about a 20-minute flight to Kaneohe with the tailwind and a 30-minute flight back,” recalls Staff Sgt. David Burkhart of Mililani. ”The first day was bad (fire wise); it was an emergency situation, intense, but we took care of that … and by the third day, we were searching for places to drop.”

“Our men did an excellent job performing water drops, but it was the total effort that made it a success. The people on Molokai helped and when they landed at 8 p.m., another crew was preparing the aircraft for the next day’s flight – the maintenance and refueling,” said Hara. “We also had a slice of people on the mainland for training so we were already running shorthanded, which meant longer hours for the people we had on hand. Everyone did a great job.”

After battling the elements and averaging 133 drops a day for three days, having no maintenance problems with their aircraft and working shorthanded, Umeda was able to sum up the last thought he and his comrades had when they landed their last aircraft. ”The satisfaction that we got the job done.”

– 1998 Winter Pūpūkahi pp. 1 & 7

• The Guard’s CH-47 Chinooks were used in the suppression of brush(fires on Hawaii, Molokai, and Oahu, dropping 800,000 gallons of water in support of local fire departments. Such timely and invaluable response to county officials proved essential in quelling fires that were in locations difficult to reach, covered broad tracts of land, or were immediate threats to homes and businesses of community citizens.
• The HIARNG UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters have also participated in the fire fighting missions on Hawaii and Molokai.

– 1999 Annual Report pp. 15