Check Six – 2006: Gridlock! H-1 Closure Paralyzes Oahu

Posted on Jan 5, 2022 in Check Six

Where were you in the afternoon and evening on September 5, 2006? 

Motorists were still snarled in heavy traffic late last night on the H-1 freeway near Middle Street in Kalihi. Jamm Aquino photograph from the linked Honolulu Star Bulletin article

The craziness started about 1:30 p.m. An Army flatbed trailer hauling an oversized crane/backhoe hit the pedestrian overpass in Aiea. The structure sustained heavy damage that required an onsite inspection by Department of Transportation engineers. It was an extensive inspection that closed all lanes of the H1 Westbound. 

After completing the inspection, the DOT engineers decided to take the overpass down immediately. The overpass removal ran into the early morning. Anyone attempting to travel West bound on the H1, Kamehameha Highway and Aiea Road were caught in the worst traffic gridlock in Oahu history.

Anyone caught in this gridlock has a memory…

The Hawaii New Now helicopter report in the early afternoon

The Honolulu Star Bulletin report from the following morning