Public safety?
I am writing this letter, hoping that someone at Hawaiian Telcom will read this. Yes, that’s right. This may be easier and faster than trying to get someone to answer my calls.
It all started the afternoon of Aug. 17, driving home in the pouring rain. I was about a mile from home when I noticed that an old utility pole was leaning. As I passed it, I noticed that the bottom was starting to splinter. When I got home, I called Hawaiian Tel and Hawaiian Electric (didn’t know which utility). No one to answer my calls because it was after 4:30 p.m. So I called the local police station. Ditto. I was told to call HECO because “they own all the poles.” I had to call their emergency number. A nice dispatcher answered. I explained to her that it was not an emergency, but I was told to call HECO. After asking me a few questions, she said she’d send someone to check on it. A little later, I got a call from a HECO employee asking me for the precise location of the pole. I told him in Holualoa, south of the school and across the street from the cemetery. He wasn’t too familiar with Holualoa because he was driving from Waimea. Wow. A while later, I got a call from the dispatcher; she verified my story but told me that the pole belonged to Hawaiian Telcom. She said she’d email the information to Hawaiian Telcom and that I should call Hawaiian Telcom in the morning. I called the next morning. The automated voice gave me the option to hang up and someone would call me back in 8 to 11 minutes. OK. Got the call, but I obviously picked the wrong option. I was disconnected. After another couple of tries, I decided to stay on the line. According to my phone, I was on the last try for over 47 minutes! I absolutely had to leave for work, so I hung up. If I stayed on the line, would I still be on hold? Only asking.
I am not angry with the employees. I’m frustrated with and aggravated by the call-in system. It should be user-friendlier. And I hope the pole is replaced before there’s a real emergency.
Kathryn Yasuda
Holualoa
Take care of each other
Recently, I’ve sadly watched my sister die from cancer, from afar, at the UCSF medical center. The professionals there were considerate, helpful and compassionate, in helping our family with end-of-life decisions. Sadly, because of the COVID-19 outbreak, the only nearby relative, my elder sister (in her late 70s), could not visit my dying sister, and no one else could be there as she was slowly slipping away from a stroke and related cancer symptoms. Yes, it’s tragic when a sibling is dying slowly from a terminal disease; but so much more painful when you know they are dying alone.
It just reminds me — and I hope to pass this message along — that the precautions we take now can help alleviate a lot of suffering in the future. Your commitment to wearing a mask, staying socially distanced, and being aware when in a high-traffic environment may help keep you and your family members alive. Also, I suggest making sure you have your “affairs in order” — don’t leave it to siblings or loved ones to help make end-of-life decisions. Advanced care directives can alleviate a lot of suffering. Take care of each other.
Antoinette Reynolds
Kailua-Kona
Under a national spell
We will look back on the Trump years as if they were a mean-spirited, national spell, which hypnotized America, that vanished with his departure.
Oshen Klink
Pahoa
Kenoi saw us as one island, one people
So nice to see former-Mayor Billy Kenoi’s name come up again regarding Resolution 709. Not so much over his testimony but to see he remains among us and offering his manao. As one in council staff during his terms, I felt he always maintained an open door and certainly exhibited himself as a mayor for the entire island. Many speak of one island but he’s been the only one in my 23 years here who visibly demonstrated his administration’s openness to one island, one people. Mahalo Mayor Billy and I send you warm aloha and wishes for continued recovery.
Steve Lopez
Kailua-Kona
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