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Read the third-party assessment of the Navy Red Hill fuel storage facility

US Navy Region Hawaii

The U.S. Navy released a third-party assessment of the Red Hill fuel storage facility Friday afternoon Hawaiʻi time. Local officials and stakeholders have been asking for the final report for months. The document appears to have been completed in April.

Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc., a mainland company, was contracted by the Navy "to assess the operational risks associated with both defueling Red Hill and ongoing operations at Red Hill and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam."

The 880-page document identifies "a host of maintenance issues" such as corroded piping, damaged coating, missing bracing, degraded pier structures, and more.

"The necessary repairs will be extensive, involving the entire distribution system from Red Hill to the Pearl Harbor waters," the Hawaiʻi Department of Health said in response to the assessment.

Deputy Director of Environmental Health Kathleen Ho said the report describes "extensive and critical repairs" that will be needed to safely defuel and decommission Red Hill.

“While the need to defuel Red Hill is urgent, public and environmental safety remain the first priority. We’ll continue to bear these things in mind as we prepare to receive the Navy’s phased defueling plan and implementation schedule by the June 30 deadline," she said in a statement.

Click here to read the full assessment report.

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