Pāhala Swimming Pool Closed Due to Pump Failure

The Pāhala Swimming Pool will be closed for the next three to four weeks due to a mechanical failure of the main circulation pump.

Located on the campus of Ka‘ū High & Pāhala Elementary School, the pool closed on May 3. Parks and Recreation Director Maurice Messina said in-house mechanics are running diagnostics on the pump.

“We got to find out exactly the problem then find a vendor who has the parts and get quotes,” Messina said.

Every gallon of water in a pool has to be recirculated through the pump system to make sure it’s clean.

“For the safety of the public, we just have to close it to get it fixed,” Messina said.

Hawai‘i County now has four pools closed to the public. Honoka‘a is currently closed for repairs. Messina said they don’t have a timeline on when the facility will reopen at this time. Nas Swimming Pool in Hilo is closed for ADA upgrades, which Messina hopes will be completed in six months.

The Laupāhoehoe Swimming Pool is set to reopen next week after filter repairs.

“Our pools are the most expensive recreation component we have,” Messina said. “Our goal right now is to keep them running with our available funds and available resources.”

With an approximate budget of $2 million, Messina said the county does its best to make repairs with the funds they have.

“When things break, we just have to close them down for the safety of the public,” he said.