If You Want Something Done Right …

When it rains here in Hawaii, it pours … often for days at a time. The Island of Kaua'i seems to get more than its share and, as a matter of fact, the wettest spot on earth is found on that island. The summit of Mount Wai'ale'ale typically gets something like 400 inches of rain a year.

Back in December, heavy rains washed away a small bridge and a section of road leading into Polihale State Park on Kaua'i, cutting off a number residents and impacting some small businesses providing tours for visitors ... a big problem that could be reduced to a pretty simple equation: No road = no tourists = no income.

Typically, the State came out, looked at the mess, studied it, and months later came back shaking their heads. Gee, they said, the estimate for fixing the road and repairing the bridge is 4 million bucks and, since the State government is facing a big deficit, there’s just no telling when we’ll get around to fixing the road.

So a bunch of local folks said, “Screw it!” And using donated labor, materials and equipment, fixed the road and rebuilt the bridge in ten days!

The only detail left is to get the State back to inspect and certify the new bridge.

Uh-oh!