More than 80 members of the Hawaii Army and Air National Guard deployed Thursday in Puna to assist police as the June 27 lava flow continues its relentless march in Pahoa. ADVERTISING More than 80 members of the Hawaii Army
More than 80 members of the Hawaii Army and Air National Guard deployed Thursday in Puna to assist police as the June 27 lava flow continues its relentless march in Pahoa.
Deputy Police Chief Paul Ferreira said the service members will act as “eyes and ears for the police and for the community, as well, to add security to the affected areas.” He added the guard’s role is similar to its August deployment, when Tropical Storm Iselle wreaked havoc in parts of Puna and Ka‘u.
“They’ll be assisting us with the roadblocks; also assisting us with patrols in the subdivisions in the affected areas,” he said.
Ferreira said the guard doesn’t have police powers and its members are unarmed.
Vernon Miyagi, executive officer of Hawaii Emergency Management Agency — and retired Hawaii National Guard commanding general — said Wednesday the troops, who trained earlier this week with local police, are all Big Islanders.
“These are not people from the outside,” he said. “They know the street names; they know the people. They’re part of the community.”
Ferreira said the guard is establishing its command post at the former Hawaii Geothermal Project-A site off Pahoa-Kapoho Road in lower Puna. He added if lava crosses Highway 130, cutting off the main route to lower Puna, police will “co-locate with them” at that site to have a presence south of the lava.
“We’ll dedicate officers to the south of the lava flow,” he said. “We won’t be waiting for officers to come down to Hawaiian Beaches or Pahoa, crossing through Railroad Avenue to get to the affected area.”
“As long as Highway 130 is open, our Puna operations are being run out of the main Pahoa station,” Ferreira added, noting media reports the Pahoa station had been closed are erroneous. He said the station will remain open as long as it isn’t threatened by lava.
Ferreira also said if and when the lava crosses the highway, Puna patrol will increase its shifts from eight to 12 hours to have a larger police presence in affected communities.
“If we need to, we will be bringing officers in from South Hilo,” he said. “We’ll start with administration, our investigative division, our community policing officers in South Hilo who have been identified already, and we’ll get them into the area.”
Ferreira noted if those plans go into effect there will be “a lot of overtime” as happens in “any kind of natural disaster.”
He added if police need to establish a lower Puna command post at the former geothermal site, it will be a bare-bones facility.
“Everybody’s picturing the police department as in a fixed location, and we need to maintain mobility as much as possible. The police patrol units are mobile,” he said. “We don’t want anybody sitting within a building. We want them on the road. Your vehicle is your office, so we would keep them on the road. The only reason for a facility is if we need to process and release (suspects) for an arrest booking or bring somebody in for an interview that cannot be done out in the field.”
Suspects who need to be detained overnight or longer will be transported to Hilo, by emergency routes if need be, Ferreira said.
He also reiterated that reports of looting, which have popped up on social media and some traditional media, are inaccurate. He said reported burglaries in Hawaiian Beaches/Hawaiian Shores, Nanawale Estates and Leilani Estates for this month are actually fewer than in October 2013.
“Comparatively, we’re not experiencing a spike in crime or any mass looting that’s being referred to in the social media,” he said. “If people do have crimes to report, they should report it to the police, because putting it on Facebook does not help at all. It only adds to the anxiety.”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
