Officials Continue Damage Assessments From Hurricane Lane

Hawai‘i County Civil Defense, State and Federal agencies and the American Red Cross continued their damage assessments from Hurricane Lane on Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018. To report flood damage from the recent heavy rains, please call Civil Defense for a damage assessment at (808) 935-0031. Teams led by VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster) are also available to help clean up your home or property (debris removal, mucking out, etc.) after the damaging floods. If you would like assistance, please call (808) 643-5555.

The Department of Health recommends the following actions to clean up flooded homes and businesses:

• Remove standing water
• Dry out your home or business
• Remove wet materials – Materials that are wet and cannot be thoroughly cleaned and dried within 24-48 hours should be discarded (i.e. Carpet/flooring/padding, furniture, drywall, particle boards, insulation etc.)
• Clean and sanitize
• Hard-surfaced walls and floors, and other household surfaces should be cleaned with soap and water and disinfected with a solution of one cup of bleach in 5 gallons of water.
• During clean-up, wear rubber boots and waterproof gloves if floodwaters have contaminated various portions of the household. Wash all linens and clothing that has been contaminated with floodwaters in hot water, or dry clean them.

For items that cannot be washed or dry cleaned, such as mattresses and upholstered furniture, and carpeting, it is recommended that these items be discarded. Trying to salvage these items can only lead to more problems, such as the growth of molds and other microbes that will later affect your Indoor Air Quality.

The Hawai‘i State Department of Health is advising the public to stay out of streams, coastal, and standing waters that are contaminated by storm water. Storm water may contain harmful micro-organisms from overflowing cesspools or septic tanks as well as animal waste washed into streams and storm drains.