Question: I am retired military and tried to get onto Bellows with two Canadian friends, and they were denied entry. What’s happening? Is that the same for all island military bases?
Answer: “Foreign National Guests will NOT BE ALLOWED base entry unless/until they have been properly vetted through Security Forces. Requests are accepted only within a three (3) month to thirty (30) day window,” according to the website for Bellows Air Force Station, which is renowned for its beach, cabins, camping and other recreational activities in coastal Waimanalo, while also being a military training site.
Detailed instructions on seeking entry to Bellows for friends from Canada or other countries are posted at bellowsafs.com/foreign-guests. The website describes a multistep process that would include you (the sponsor) and your foreign guests submitting acceptable proof of identity for verification. For you that would be a copy of your Department of Defense ID (as a military retiree), and for them it would be a copy of their passports, the website says.
These requirements have been in force at Bellows AFS for many years, according to the customer service representative we spoke to Monday. She did not know whether the entry process for noncitizens is the same at all military bases on Oahu, so we have sought answers from military public information officers. We’ll publish more information when we hear back from them.
On a related note, Bellows has recently updated its ID card policy for base entry, even for day visits, according to its website, which states that “all patrons over the age of 18 (must) have their ID scanned upon entering the Bellows AFS front gate. These new procedures may cause slight delays in entry.”
Q: How many undocumented immigrants are in Hawaii?
A: About 51,000, 46% of whom are from the Philippines, according to the Migration Policy Institute, which describes itself as an independent, nonpartisan think tank. MPI’s estimate is based on data as recent as 2019. Read more at migrationpolicy.org.
Q: Regarding the FEMA homes for Maui fire survivors (808ne.ws/3V9K1Sz), how long will those last?
A: “The modular homes have been built to last 30 years or more. It is the first time that FEMA has built temporary homes — known as Alternative Transportable Temporary Housing Units — that meet local and international building codes,” according to a news release from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA says it can reallocate units once they are no longer needed as temporary housing for fire survivors.
Q: If a fire victim declined a FEMA home earlier, can they get one now?
A: No. “If FEMA offered you a housing option that would meet your household needs and you turned it down, you are no longer able to rejoin the Direct Housing Program and cannot live in a Direct Lease unit or an Alternative Transportable Temporary Housing Unit,” the agency says.
Q: Last week or so, there was dramatic video of a bus in a sinkhole. I think it was on Maui. What caused the sinkhole?
A: It was Nov. 20 in Kahului, when the rear tires of a Maui Bus got stuck in a sinkhole caused by the break of an aging 12-inch water main, according to a news release from Maui County. The passengers and driver exited the bus safely, after which the vehicle was extricated from the sinkhole and the water main was repaired, the news release said.
The bus driver had tried to drive through water pooled on Lono Avenue near West Kamehameha, not realizing the pavement was broken underneath. In the incident’s aftermath, Maui County’s Department of Water Supply encouraged “motorists to avoid driving through pooling water during flooding, water main breaks and other infrastructure incidents,” the news release said.
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