![]() ![]() His email said he and his staff were drinking the water. She pointed to a Monday email from the commander of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam that told residents the navy was testing water samples but it had no immediate indication the water wasn’t safe. However, both are now complaining of breathing problems.īurness said she has been frustrated with the navy’s response, which she believes has been dismissive of families’ concerns. The family has mostly been eating off of plastic and paper plates and eating out.īurness said her stomach cramps were about 85% better, but not over. She ordered private water delivery for $120 a month. She told her family not to drink the water and not to wash their hair and face with it. ![]() The navy is also setting up dedicated medical clinics.īurness said she had started seeing comments on social media from military families saying their tap water smelled like fuel after her daughter complained of feeling sick. The army said it would help affected families move into hotels or new homes and the navy is working on a similar program. The department has started distributing bottled water and said Marines would set up showers and laundry facilities connected to clean water. So far, the navy said, it had received calls about a fuel odor or physical ailments from 680 homes in navy housing and 270 in army housing on the navy’s water system. The navy said it had removed about 14,000 gallons (53,000 liters) of the mixture, and said the liquid hadn’t leaked into the environment. But the navy on 22 November said a water and fuel mixture had leaked into a fire suppression system drain line in a tunnel at a massive fuel storage facility three miles inland of Pearl Harbor. It’s still unclear how exactly the petroleum ended up in the water. The navy has also vowed to investigate how contaminants got into the well and prevent it from happening again, he said. The process could take four to 10 days, he said. The navy will flush clean water through its distribution system to clear residual petroleum products from the water, Converse said, and will follow that procedure with testing to make sure the water meets Environmental Protection Agency drinking standards. Rear Adm Blake Converse, Pacific Fleet deputy commander, told a town hall meeting on Thursday the navy had taken the Red Hill well offline on Sunday because it was the closest well to affected housing areas. And on Thursday, the navy announced that tests had identified petroleum in its Red Hill well, which taps into an aquifer near the base. On Wednesday, Hawaii’s department of health said that a sample of navy tap water from an elementary school had tested positive for petroleum product. Some, like Burness, said they suffered from stomach pain and headaches. Residents in navy housing this week started complaining of a fuel-like odor coming from their tap water. The problems have afflicted one of the most important navy bases in the world, home to submarines, ships and the commander of US forces in the Indo-Pacific region, and they may even threaten one of Honolulu’s most important aquifers and water sources. Their family is among hundreds of military families living near Pearl Harbor with similar complaints after the navy’s water system somehow became contaminated by petroleum. ![]()
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