Two of the four lagoons at Ko Olina Resort will likely be closed through the weekend after more than 1,000 gallons of raw and untreated waste water from a broken main seeped into the ocean late Thursday night.
The break was reported at 9:10 p.m. at the city’s West Beach No. 1 Wastewater Pump Station at 2750 Aliinui Drive on the grounds of the resort near Paradise Cove. It was stopped two hours later. The 16-inch sewage main feeds the storm drain that empties in waters just off the resort.
Warning signs advising people to stay out of the ocean until further notice were posted between Paradise Cove and Honu Lagoon, the so-called "second lagoon" at Ko Olina, on Friday morning.
The warning signs likely will have to stay up over the weekend, said Dale Mikami, an environmental specialist with the state Health Department’s Clean Water Branch.
Results from testing for bacteria in water samples likely won’t be available until after the weekend, he said.
Meanwhile, the city Department of Environmental Services was continuing to repair the broken main Friday night.
Lagoons 1 and 2 of the resort were closed but the two other lagoons, on the Kapolei side of the property, remained open and accessible to hotel guests and the public through Friday, said Ko Olina spokeswoman Sweetie Nelson.
Because of the repairs being done near Paradise Cove, the exit from the resort for vehicles is being diverted to its "back gate" on Koio Road until further notice, Nelson said. Entry into Ko Olina from its main gate on Aliinui Drive is being allowed through one of two lanes, she said.
That provision will likely be in place through the weekend, Nelson said.
Norman Kaneshige, general manager for Paradise Cove, said it was business as usual for the cultural and culinary attraction, with the typical Friday night crowd of 700 to 800 people expected to visit. The only glitch was that a nightly "hukilau" activity in waters just off the resort was expected to be canceled until the all-clear sign is given, Kaneshige said.
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Star-Advertiser reporter Gregg K. Kakesako contributed to this report.
