17 Feb 2025 (Last Modified 17 Feb 2025)

Hawaii Jet Fuel

• Nov 2021 JP-5 jet fuel spill in Hawaii
• Oahu
• Public water system joint basin (Pearl Harbor Hickam)

Red Hill NBulk

• Strategic fuel reserve

• 2 mi uphill from Pearl Harbor

• Red Hill well, many spills, 3 in 2021

• Aloha Tower

• Jan 13, 2014, 27,000 gallons of jet fuel

• May 2015 AOC (administrative order on consent, meaning they agree to clean up)

• Nov 28, fuel-like odor in water
• Nov 29, Navy reports 14,000 gallons of jet fuel in water, HDOH says: “Do not drink, cook, or bathe in water”
• Use DMB song
• Navy has independent source of water
• Jet pipes leak, fuel surge, went into fire suppression system. No PFAS.
• Broke valve by people mover, sump underneath, leaked into water.
• French drain

Hydrocarbon toxicity

• volatlity
• solubility
• viscosity

• surface tension

• Some have toxic metabolites. (n-hexane, benzene, toluene, xylene)
• pulmonary pneumonitis from disruption of surfactant

Dermal

• defatting

Sensitizers

Oral ingestion

• Tiki torch oil

JP-5, JP-8, JET A

• benzene, toluene, xylenes, methylnapthalenes, C5-8 aliphatics.

– Tormoehlen, L. M., Tekulve, K. J., & Nañagas, K. A. (2014). Hydrocarbon toxicity: a review. Clinical toxicology, 52(5), 479-489.

• How to infer toxicity?

Dose

• like Flint water tough to determine dose and where it went in the system.
• GI symptoms, skin irritation, pneumonia-like syndrome, not much dyspnea (suggesting low viscosity)

Risk communication

– Inconsistent messages from Navy and HDOH foments distrust. Navy says water is safe, HDOH says don’t use it. Sound familiar to COVID? Army and NAvy disagreed.

• Don’t know safe level of exposure, except 0.

• Any long term effects?