MEDIA RELEASE: State of Hawaii Mitigation and Resiliency Project – Honolulu Fire Department Station 7 Hurricane Retrofit
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Hawai`i Emergency Management Agency
DAVID Y. IGE
GOVERNOR
MAJOR GENERAL KENNETH S. HARA
DIRECTOR OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
LUKE P. MEYERS
ADMINISTRATOR OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
State of Hawaii Mitigation and Resiliency Project – Honolulu Fire Department Station 7 Hurricane Retrofit
HONOLULU — The Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funds for the Honolulu Fire Department to install hurricane-resistant doors on the Waikiki Fire Station (Station 7).
The project will replace and harden five fire station bay doors to mitigate hazards and provide long-term solutions to reduce and eliminate losses from future hurricanes and other natural hazards.
Funds will be used to replace the existing aluminum doors with anodized aluminum doors, which will provide higher protection from hazards, especially high winds and projectiles during severe weather conditions.
The Hawaiʻi Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA) has been working in coordination with FEMA and the Honolulu Fire Department to approve the funding for the project since 2017, HI-EMA Hazard Mitigation Planner Larry Kanda, said about the project.
Kanda said that this project was particularly tricky because it was funded through two different disaster declarations and done in phases, with phase one – architecture and engineering design – beginning in 2017; and, phase two – construction – beginning in 2018.
“FEMA allowed us to do the accommodation,” he said, adding that though it is not typical to fund a project through two disasters, in this instance, because it was such a high-priority project, it made sense and was allowed.
HI-EMA worked intricately with the Honolulu Fire Department and FEMA to ensure the application was written correctly and all the key elements were included.
“We want to thank our partners who helped make this project become a reality,” Acting Fire Chief Lionel Camara Jr., said. “Collaborating with HI-EMA and the City’s Department of Design and Construction was instrumental in ensuring every detail was carefully analyzed and executed in order to obtain the federal funds.”
The Honolulu Fire Department Station 7 is the primary response station for the Waikiki area. The station covers 28.9 street miles containing several high-, mid-, and low-rise hotels and residential condominiums. The station serves an approximate population of 32,000.
In addition to the hotels and residential units, several schools are located within Station 7ʻs response area including Waikiki Elementary, Jefferson Elementary, the Hawaii School for the Deaf and Blind, and La Pietra Hawaii School for Girls Schools located just outside, but nearby Station 7 include Kapiolani Community College, Iolani School, and Kaimuki Intermediate and High Schools, where, in major incidents, Station 7 emergency personnel provide mutual aid.
The station houses an engine, a ladder, Battalion 2 Headquarters, and a Battalion Commander Response Vehicle, making continued operations of the station vital to protecting lives and minimizing property damage in the event of a severe weather incident.
The entire cost of the project is $321,775.00. The federal share is 75%, or $241,331.25 and the non-federal share of the cost is 25%, or $80,443.75.
The project is scheduled to take 22 months to complete, with a completion date set for Feb. 12, 2023.
“From a mitigation standpoint, with such a high priority project, it is deeply satisfying to see the project funded and get off the ground,” Kanda said.
- For more information about the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program click here.
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Contact:
Douglas Carroll
Public Information Officer
[email protected]
808-285-1516
Hollie Reina
Public Relations Specialist
[email protected]
808-620-5423
For latest information from the HI-EMA go to: https://www.ready.hawaii.gov