Department of Defense

Presidential Disaster Declared. Over Oct. 28 – Nov. 2, 2000, Hawaii County recorded some of the heaviest rains and flooding in its history. Twentyfour hour rainfall totals reported record numbers from Hilo to Pahala, with the Hilo Airport recording nearly 28 inches and Pahala over 36 inches. The steady downpour caused widespread damage to roadways, bridges, homes and businesses. After a prolonged period of drought, the rains came suddenly, produced by the remnants of a tropical depression. While Hawaii County was the most severely impacted, portions of Maui and Moloka’i also reported minor damages.

– 2001 Annual Report pp. 23

Big Island soldiers cleanup after flood

By 1st Lt. Jeffrey O. Hickman and Sgt. 1st Class Stephen M. Lum

Residents of Hilo district have two reasons to be thankful for this season, the rain stopping and the Hawaii National Guard.

Operation HO’ALA (restore)

Big Island Guard soldiers from Company B, 2nd Battalion, 299th Infantry were called into action to conduct a cleanup of debris in Waiakea Uka, Hawaii, after rains caused major floods in the area. Hawaii Army Guard aircrews from the newly reorganized Company D, 207th Aviation unit, flew their UH-60 Blackhawks to assist in the aerial damage assessment, rescue 15 stranded tourists and brought election ballot.a to the stranded resident a of Pahala. The reconnaissance missions included Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) representatives, Sam Callejo, the governor’s chief of staff, and Guard photo and video teams.

Hilo and Kona Guard soldiers and’ airmen from the 291st Combat Communications Squadron assisted the Hawaii County Civil Defense in disaster relief. The Guard’s mission included over 100 truck loads of debris. Living rooms, driveways, and streets were cleared of natural debris, and, household items that were damaged by the torrential rainfall. The 120 Big Island soldiers loaded 55 5-ton trucks of debris in Hilo alone.

Hawaii County Civil Defense Administrator, Bill Davis, expressed his thanks for a job well done. “We certainly appreciate all the efforts that have been done not only by the state, but by the Guard,” Davis said.

The cleanup started during the November drill weekend and carried over to the next couple of days. During the weekend, more than 100 soldiers participated in the relief operation and during the week, they had over 40 soldiers a day volunteering for duty.

Spc. Tobey Duldulao of Company B, summarized the feelings of all the Guard members participating, “It’s good to help the community in a disaster like this.”

In the Kawailani area of Waiakea Uka, Lawrence and Sharon Moyer share an opinion of the relief efforts provided by the Hawaii Army National Guard, “They are fantastic!” The Moyers experienced first hand the destructive and devastating power of this most recent flood. This is their third flood since 1979, this time they have insurance, but it still caught them by surprise.

“By 1:00 in the morning, the water was door knob high, finally it broke through the jalousies and washed through the house,” explained Mr. Moyer. Their backyard is now covered with three feet of mud, rock, street and other debris from the neighborhood. The road that borders their backyard collapsed all the way to the center line. Guard members spent a lot of time on the Moyer residence. The driveway needed to be shoveled clean, and a couple of truck loads were filled from this house alone. It didn’t go unnoticed.

“They have done a good job of cleaning up, I’m very happy . .. more than happy, thank you so much,” said Mrs. Moyer.

The efforts by the Hawaii Army National Guard were not limited to cleanup duties. A UH-60 Blackhawk was employed to fly FEMA representatives over the flood damaged area. Fifteen tourists were stranded in the Wood Valley area of the Big Island held up in a temple. The Guard used two two-and-a-half ton trucks to evacuate the group and brought them back to Hilo. Once the group reached civilization, they expressed relief.

Sgt. Mark Mengibin, Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 299th Infantry, “We actually like this kind of stuff and try to do our best to help everybody out.”

– 2000 October- December Pūpūkahi pp. 1 & 6

Command Notes

What a year it’s been. It started off with a rather uneventful Y2K changeover, but the Big Island was hit with a major natural disaster in November (see story on page one), which just goes to show that we never know when or where a disaster is going to strtke. That makes it imperative to always be prepared to respond to our vitally important state mission.

Our soldiers and airmen who participated in the Big Island operation performed in a professional manner and greatly enhanced the reputation of the Hawaii National Guard within the communities affected.

– 2000 October- December Pūpūkahi pp.2