Army Pohakuloa Training Area Poses a fire hazard!
Letter printed in the Hawaii Tribune-Herald and West Hawaii Today on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023
Mahalo for the Trib 11/5/23 article about Fire Hazards on the Big Island. But I haven’t seen any fire assessment in depth look at having a Live-fire Bombing and Shelling Military base in the center of our island which is a very windy and dry area. How about an article on that? How many fires were started by Pohakuloa in the last 25 years? Just one year before the Lahaina fire, a fire started in Pohakuloa burned 20,000 acres, including land outside the base. Instead of calling it the Pohakuloa fire, it was called the Leilani fire. Deception or what? And given all the toxins used at Pohakuloa, including Depleted Uranium, what toxins are blowing in the wind and smoke off Pohakuloa? Do any officials know and care? Hawaii Dr. Lorrin Pang, MD (listed in the Who’s Who top 3% of America’s Best Doctors) and 24 years in the Army Medical Corps, said Pohakuloa should be ringed 360 degrees for a full year with proper air filters to know what’s coming off the base. In 2008 after Depleted Uranium was confirmed used at PTA, the County Council passed Resolution 639-08 by a vote of 8-1. It called for 8 actions, including comprehensive INDEPENDENT testing and monitoring. To date, none of the 8 actions called for in that resolution have been done. Why?
Jim Albertini
