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A white Christmas comes to Honokohau

Families still recovering from September flood; debris still a danger

By Chris Sugidono 5 min read

Honokohau Valley residents enjoyed a "white" Christmas on Tuesday with things "almost getting back to normal" following September's tropical storm-triggered flood that swept up two small dwellings and several cars.

"From what I hear everybody is almost getting back to normal," Mundy Gillcoat said Thursday. "We spent Christmas in the valley. It was pretty beautiful. It was really white outside with the clouds and the mist. It was kind of magical. I shot a video and pretended it was snow."

Gillcoat's family was among dozens hit by the raging Honokohau Stream that was fed by torrential rain from Tropical Storm Olivia on Sept. 12. The stream and ditches overflowed and forced many families to evacuate their homes, while others were cut off.

No injuries were reported, but countless animals were swept away or drowned.

One family that appeared to have endured the worst of it was the Losano family, who had one of their bedrooms filled with bunk beds for five children swept completely out of the valley. The couple's bedroom also was swept a couple of hundred feet downstream and left on a pile of vegetation.

The family's kitchen and living room were still standing but were heavily damaged by the flood with broken doors, windows and furniture. They were later destroyed by fire on Dec. 4, Gillcoat said.

"It was just a bunch of first responders putting it out," he said. "People said they saw people in there running out and the fire came later."

The family could not be reached for comment Thursday. Gillcoat said the family originally had planned to purchase the property and rebuild, but has since moved to Kahakuloa. He was not sure what the landlord will do with the property.

Honokohau resident Malia Wong, who has helped organize aid to impacted residents, said the Losano family is doing better, and she tries to keep in touch with them.

"They kind of were prepared and packed up much of the important documents, clothes and kids things," she said. "They were really lucky they didn't really lose too much."

When the storm hit, Wong and her family went house to house checking on neighbors. She and others rescued several people trapped by chest-high waters.

Wong said one woman lost several pigs and goats as well as nearly a hundred chickens. She said the woman's hunting dogs were saved, and her son has helped clean up the property.

"Every single one of them (chickens) went," she said. "There wasn't one left. But it could've been a lot worse. They had so many animals there, and it leveled out all of their pens."

Although the woman was able to regroup after the flood, she wound up losing her husband a week later to pancreatic cancer, Wong said. She said the husband's diagnosis came too late.

"It was sad for her because with all that lost, then she loses her husband," Wong said. "She had a lot of support, though, so she's back and running. She's a strong woman."

Wong said there are still some issues with the stream with large trees and other debris blocking water flow. She said there are two or three major blockages, with one that is a "big tangled mess of lumber and wood" about 30 feet high.

"The storm started putting beaver dams spread throughout the river," she said. "I'm a little worried and concerned. . . . What if it came down and destroyed things?''

Volunteers have ventured into the valley recently to clear debris, but more work needs to be done, Wong said. She added that trees along the road need to be cleared, because they are blocking the sun from drying muddy areas.

"The mud is terrible, and the back side of the valley is really bad," she said. "Cars up there don't last too long."

Wong hopes to gather members of the community to cut the palm trees along the road into the valley, which have become a safety hazard for motorists and pedestrians.

She said a truck slipped off the edge and went into the river on Thanksgiving Day due to the mud.

"One area is an endless and bottomless mud pit," she said. "Cars have to follow the tire patterns, otherwise you start slipping and it's only a one lane road so you're stuck. It's so bad, and for some kids, they got to walk home from school.

"It stinks so bad up there; it's gnarly."

Despite the muddy roads and blocked streams, families were able to enjoy Christmas.

Gillcoat said he saw Christmas lights on a few houses along the roadside - a rare sight in the valley. He said he spent the day with his wife and children at home.

"We had a good time opening presents with the kids and playing Christmas music," he said.

Wong hosted 10 people in her home for a holiday party as their kids "played with their goodies." She said she is looking forward to a bright new year and was grateful for the entire community's support after the flood.

"I'm grateful everyone in my family and everyone in the valley are safe and able to recover and have a happy Christmas," she said. "We're fortunate to be home during the holidays. I think everyone had a good holiday knowing they still had a home to go to, and just knowing the community was so helpful. We had so many volunteers.

"It's nice we still have that community spirit out there."

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