Navy: On schedule to fix Pearl Harbor water main in 1 week

HONOLULU — The Navy said Tuesday it was still fixing an underground water pipe that ruptured last week and interrupted the supply of water to about 93,000 people at Pearl Harbor.

The bursting of the 36-inch (91-centimeter) water main has also forced the Navy to postpone plans to remove 1 gallons (3.79 million liters) of fuel from three pipelines at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, the tank farm that leaked petroleum into Pearl Harbor’s tap water last year.

Navy Capt. Mark Sohaney, the commander of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, said Tuesday crews were on schedule to finish fixing the broken water main in about one week.

When the water main burst last Friday, officials had to divert water to the west side of the base. That increased pressure in smaller water lines there, leading to additional pipe breaks in Pearl City Peninsula and West Loch. These two smaller breaks have since been repaired.

The Navy issued a boil water advisory for affected areas last Friday, and gyms and child care centers have been closed.

Sohaney told reporters he expects to reopen most of the base’s 12 child care centers on Wednesday.

The water problems forced Joint Task Force Red Hill to delay plans it had for this week to drain fuel from three pipelines connecting the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility to fuel points on the base.

The Navy needs to remove fuel from these pipes to prepare for the eventual closure of the World War II storage tanks. It plans to finish draining 100 million gallons of fuel from the tanks by July 2024 and close the facility afterward.