The recent flood waters on Oʻahu bring back memories of two decades ago.
On Oct. 30, 2004, the Mānoa Stream swelled, sending devastating flood water through the University of Hawaiʻi campus, crippling critical services and highlighting vulnerabilities of basement offices.
Twenty years ago, all state workers' paychecks were printed in the basement of the Kalanimoku Building in Honolulu's Capital District. That's where HPR visited state Comptroller Keith Regan last week to learn about what his office has done to protect those vital government services.
Regan said that the state purchased flood barriers 20 years ago to prevent water from entering the basement of the Kalanimoku Building.
"Even during those times where we deploy those water barriers, we also bring in pumps to ensure that if there is water that does get into the basement, into that parking facility, we can quickly get rid of that and move that out of here," he said.
Though a lot of paychecks have been transitioned to direct deposit, some people still get paid via paper checks.
"We print probably anywhere from 60,000 to 70,000 checks on a monthly basis here from our facility. We still do have a large volume of paper checks that are printed, but our goal is to move that off-site to somewhere that is a little more secure," he said.
The state Capitol has also dealt with ongoing flooding issues. The building used to be surrounded by reflecting pools, but they were drained after water started leaking into rooms below.
"We need to make sure that we prevent water from destroying documents and really just making life miserable for all of those employees. So we've done a really good job at getting that issue resolved on the Senate side. We're now working on the House side," he said.
He said one of his department's goals is addressing deferred maintenance issues at state facilities.
"We're very fortunate that the Legislature has given us funding over the years to be able to work through that list. But as you know, every year you tackle projects — there's new projects that get added, right, because buildings continue to age and continue to have systems that need to be replaced," he said.
Regan said that his department is practicing and preparing for future natural disaster events.
"We're constantly looking for ways to be better prepared so that we can make sure that the services that need to be provided to the people, especially during times of crisis, can be delivered," he said.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Oct. 29, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
