Nanakuli residents protest fireworks disposal

HONOLULU (AP) — Residents of Nanakuli strongly object to a plan to dispose of illegal fireworks in their community and the state Department of Health will ask a disposal contractor to choose another location.

At a meeting of the Nanakuli-Maili Neighborhood Board at Nanaikapono Elementary School on Tuesday, residents lined up to say Nanakuli, with nearby homes and farms, was the wrong location to fire off 5,400 pyrotechnic devices.

“It’s no surprise, honestly, that you picked our side first and we’re tired of it,” said board member Stacelynn Eli.

The federal government had seized pyrotechnic devices illegally shipped to Honolulu and had been storing them at a Waikele storage bunker.

An April 8, 2011, explosion at the bunker killed five Donaldson Enterprises employees who were disposing of fireworks.

The U.S. Treasury Department hired Grucci Inc., a professional fireworks display company, to dispose of remaining fireworks at the bunker. The company said the safest way to dispose of them was to shoot them off as they were designed. Grucci needs both permission from the Honolulu Fire Department and approval by the health department.

The company proposed to explode fireworks once per month for six months in groups of 900 at a residential lot next to a Nanakuli chicken farm.

“I’m concerned about a lot of people, a lot of young people down there, a lot of farmers and they bringing this kind of stuff in Nanakuli? That’s sad,” said Fea Tuiloma, who owns a nearby pig farm.

State Rep. Karen Awana opposed the proposal and questioned why an emergency permit was needed.

“Why is it an emergency now since it’s been waiting in that bunker area for so long?” she asked.

Gary Gill, deputy health director, said the message was clear from Nanakuli neighbors.

“In this case the contractor did something unusual that I’ve never seen before and was recommending that the fireworks be burnt out here,” he said.