South Kona school closures extended following damaging storm

Konawaena Middle School and the Hawaiian immersion school, Ke Kula ‘O ‘Ehunuikaimalino in South Kona, will be closed through April 1 as cleanup continues after campuses were flooded during the Kona low storms.

“Classrooms have been cleaned and disinfected, and damaged materials removed, but closures are extended… to allow for final safety checks,” according to an update from the Hawai‘i Department of Education.

Konawaena High School will transition to distance learning on March 30 as 70 classrooms on the campus were flooded.

Following a comprehensive safety assessment of areas unaffected by flooding, district officials say, the high school will resume in-person instruction for a small number of vulnerable student populations in place of transitioning to distance learning. This includes special needs students in fully self-contained classrooms, students in the Alternative Learning Program Support Services and Twilight Program.

The schools were damaged during the Kona low storm that occurred on March 14, when properties in Ka‘ū and South Kona were flooded and damaged.