Ka Loko Dam Breach Disaster Has Many Similarities to Johnstown Flood
"Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it”
By Jane Dahm, Sonia Thosar, Keenan Herman and Maddie Stevens
Editor's note: Litigation to determine who is at fault for the March 14, 2006, Ka Loko Dam breach and the deaths of 8 people is still pending. The state attorney general also has opened a criminal and civil investigation into the matter.
We are a small group of fifth grade students at Daniel Wright Junior School in Lincolnshire, IL, who recently finished reading the novel “The Flood Disaster” by Peg Kehret. This book was about the Johnstown Flood of 1889, which occurred in Pennsylvania. Coincidentally, our teacher, Mrs. Otto, saw an informational broadcast about the Ka Loko Dam on ABC 20/20, which aired March 3, 2007. This program provided us with an opportunity to compare and contrast these two terrible devastating disasters. We have discovered that just like George Wilhelm Hegel said: “What experiences and history teach is this -- that people and governments never have learned anything from history, or acted on principles.”
As a group, we learned that both the flood disaster in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and the dam break in Kauai, Hawaii, were caused by greed of mankind. The South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club of Johnstown made the dam higher to allow more boating. That club was made up of some of the richest people of that time as well as some of the most pompous.
Their desire was to maintain a precious supply of fish. This caused the death of over 2,200 people -- the highest number of innocent casualties to perish in one day before 9/11. Just as the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club blocked the spillway with fishing nets, James Pflueger, who owns the Ka Loko Dam, allegedly covered the spillway with dirt, despite being warned not to by Mike Dyer of Kauai. Mr. Pflueger had many people up to the reservoir to jetski and water ski and liked to keep the water level in the reservoir high.
It appears that Mr. Pflueger also wanted to get the annoying county officials who were citing him for illegal grading at the Ka Loko Dam off his back. This was a main priority and it seems he would do anything to achieve his ultimate goal. Mr. Pflueger told Hawaii Reporter and ABC 20/20 that he alledgely gave Kauai Mayor Maryanne Kusaka a $9,000 cash donation.
We discovered that the Hawaii State Campaign Spending law says that the most any one individual can donate to a mayoral campaign in Hawaii is $4,000. We are disappointed that according to Mr. Pflueger, Mayor Kusaka accepted the money. The Kauai mayor also ordered her staff to stop inspections at Ka Loko. Her staff inspectors say so in a series of 1997 memos in county files.
Just as Mayor Kusaka reportedly accepted this cash contribution, Daniel J. Morrel did too in 1889. The South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club bribed Daniel J. Morrel with a full membership to ignore the warnings from the chief engineer and look the other way.
As we well know, both situations ended in disaster.
The most important reason these acts of greed were intolerable was because of loss of innocent lives. 2,209 people perished in Johnstown and 8 people lost their lives in Kauai, Hawaii.
Regardless of the number of lives lost, it is all one and the same. Neither disaster should have ever happened if it were not for the selfish desire of a few individuals. Many people suffered including the families in Kauai who are currently grieving their loved ones.
The power of the media is strong and has influenced the creation of many laws in the past. We appreciate what you have done already to inform people about the devastating Ka Loko Dam breach. As a group, we would like you to use your persuasive powers to spread the word about the similarities of the disasters of both Johnstown and Kauai.
In addition, we think more information needs to be published about annual dam inspections.
Had Peter Young, the director of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, insured the inspection of the Ka Loko Dam, perhaps this never would have happened.
Or had the local mayor enforced the stop work order issued by her own County Department of Public Works in 1997, perhaps almost a decade later things would have never happened as they did.
Unfortunately, in the words of novelist George Santayana, “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
Jane Dahm, Sonia Thosar, Keenan Herman and Maddie Stevens, 5th Grade Students, Daniel Wright Junior School in Lincolnshire, IL
By Jane Dahm, Sonia Thosar, Keenan Herman and Maddie Stevens
Editor's note: Litigation to determine who is at fault for the March 14, 2006, Ka Loko Dam breach and the deaths of 8 people is still pending. The state attorney general also has opened a criminal and civil investigation into the matter.
We are a small group of fifth grade students at Daniel Wright Junior School in Lincolnshire, IL, who recently finished reading the novel “The Flood Disaster” by Peg Kehret. This book was about the Johnstown Flood of 1889, which occurred in Pennsylvania. Coincidentally, our teacher, Mrs. Otto, saw an informational broadcast about the Ka Loko Dam on ABC 20/20, which aired March 3, 2007. This program provided us with an opportunity to compare and contrast these two terrible devastating disasters. We have discovered that just like George Wilhelm Hegel said: “What experiences and history teach is this -- that people and governments never have learned anything from history, or acted on principles.”
As a group, we learned that both the flood disaster in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and the dam break in Kauai, Hawaii, were caused by greed of mankind. The South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club of Johnstown made the dam higher to allow more boating. That club was made up of some of the richest people of that time as well as some of the most pompous.
Their desire was to maintain a precious supply of fish. This caused the death of over 2,200 people -- the highest number of innocent casualties to perish in one day before 9/11. Just as the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club blocked the spillway with fishing nets, James Pflueger, who owns the Ka Loko Dam, allegedly covered the spillway with dirt, despite being warned not to by Mike Dyer of Kauai. Mr. Pflueger had many people up to the reservoir to jetski and water ski and liked to keep the water level in the reservoir high.
It appears that Mr. Pflueger also wanted to get the annoying county officials who were citing him for illegal grading at the Ka Loko Dam off his back. This was a main priority and it seems he would do anything to achieve his ultimate goal. Mr. Pflueger told Hawaii Reporter and ABC 20/20 that he alledgely gave Kauai Mayor Maryanne Kusaka a $9,000 cash donation.
We discovered that the Hawaii State Campaign Spending law says that the most any one individual can donate to a mayoral campaign in Hawaii is $4,000. We are disappointed that according to Mr. Pflueger, Mayor Kusaka accepted the money. The Kauai mayor also ordered her staff to stop inspections at Ka Loko. Her staff inspectors say so in a series of 1997 memos in county files.
Just as Mayor Kusaka reportedly accepted this cash contribution, Daniel J. Morrel did too in 1889. The South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club bribed Daniel J. Morrel with a full membership to ignore the warnings from the chief engineer and look the other way.
As we well know, both situations ended in disaster.
The most important reason these acts of greed were intolerable was because of loss of innocent lives. 2,209 people perished in Johnstown and 8 people lost their lives in Kauai, Hawaii.
Regardless of the number of lives lost, it is all one and the same. Neither disaster should have ever happened if it were not for the selfish desire of a few individuals. Many people suffered including the families in Kauai who are currently grieving their loved ones.
The power of the media is strong and has influenced the creation of many laws in the past. We appreciate what you have done already to inform people about the devastating Ka Loko Dam breach. As a group, we would like you to use your persuasive powers to spread the word about the similarities of the disasters of both Johnstown and Kauai.
In addition, we think more information needs to be published about annual dam inspections.
Had Peter Young, the director of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, insured the inspection of the Ka Loko Dam, perhaps this never would have happened.
Or had the local mayor enforced the stop work order issued by her own County Department of Public Works in 1997, perhaps almost a decade later things would have never happened as they did.
Unfortunately, in the words of novelist George Santayana, “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
Jane Dahm, Sonia Thosar, Keenan Herman and Maddie Stevens, 5th Grade Students, Daniel Wright Junior School in Lincolnshire, IL
posted by ams at 2:18 PM
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