In December of 2014, there was a substantial shortage (42,000 gallons) of Jet fuel noted in the inventory at the tank farm that supplies jet fuel to the Honolulu International Airport. The tank farm is directly adjacent to Ke'ehi Lagoon and in near proximity to Honolulu Harbor. Jet fuel was found floating on the water table (less than two feet below the ground surface) throughout a large area of the tank farm, as well as outside the tank farm and within 150 feet of the lagoon.
EPA, the State of Hawaii, and the RP utilized a streamlined and nimble approach to Unified Command in performing the successful Emergency Response. Operations were conducted in close coordination with the USCG and Honolulu FD. All actions were designed to keep the fuel from reaching the surface water. This case study will detail the line of attack which included aggressive extraction the jet fuel, definition of the extent of the (subsurface) release, and design and installation of engineered capture, removal, and monitoring systems.
