Emergency Construction for Kūhiʻō Highway at Hanalei Hill Finishes Tonight

Emergency construction for Kūhiʻō Highway at Hanalei Hill is set to wrap up this evening, Oct. 15, at 5:30 p.m. At the end of the construction workday, the highway will once again allow for two-way traffic.

Emergency work began on the highway seven months ago after heavy rains triggered a landslide in March, covering a portion of Kūhiʻō Highway. Since work began to restore the thoroughfare, crews with the Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation cleared more than 80,000 tons of debris.

During the construction phase, HDOT installed more than 500 soil nails as a preventive measure in improving slope stability. This phase of construction also involved concrete work to stabilize a drainage tunnel located midslope. There was also road reconstruction and resurfacing.

The second phase of the project, currently in the design stage, is anticipated to begin in early 2022. According to HDOT, phase two work will focus on further stabilization of the lower portion of the slope, hillside drainage improvements, as well as safety and sustainability efforts to protect residents and restore the area landscape.

HDOT will continue to update the community on the Hanalei Hill landslide project throughout the interim period and into early 2022 as Phase two ramps up here.