Hawaii
Wow!
Danger Island - there is only
one way you can get there
one way you can get there
People have had to stay far away from Kahoolawe. If you didn't, you'd get your butt blown off. And you still could.
That's because the U.S. military bombed the heck out of it over and over and over.
Why would anybody want to bomb one of Hawaii's islands?
After Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, Kahoolawe was picked as a convenient spot for military target practice -- seven miles from Maui, it's the smallest of the main islands and not many people lived there.
So the Navy loaded up its big guns and blasted away. But the blasting kept going during the Korean and Vietnam wars and the Cold War, with pilots attacking mockups of enemy positions. The Navy didn't quit until 1990 after years of protests.
Today, no one lives there. Instead, Hawaii is rebuilding Kahoolawe and reserves it for Native Hawaiians' cultural, spiritual and subsistence purposes. However, unexploded bombs are still on the island and in the waters. You are forbidden to get within two miles of Kahoolawe. Back off, buddy.
BUT, there is a way!
Lots of work is going on to heal Kahoolawe by putting in trees, restoring historical sites and a whole lot more. And they take volunteers for the work crews.
If you want to do your duty to Kahoolawe, send an email with your contact info and experience to Volunteer Coordinator Jackson Bauer at jbauer@kirc.hawaii.gov.
That's because the U.S. military bombed the heck out of it over and over and over.
Why would anybody want to bomb one of Hawaii's islands?
After Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, Kahoolawe was picked as a convenient spot for military target practice -- seven miles from Maui, it's the smallest of the main islands and not many people lived there.
So the Navy loaded up its big guns and blasted away. But the blasting kept going during the Korean and Vietnam wars and the Cold War, with pilots attacking mockups of enemy positions. The Navy didn't quit until 1990 after years of protests.
Today, no one lives there. Instead, Hawaii is rebuilding Kahoolawe and reserves it for Native Hawaiians' cultural, spiritual and subsistence purposes. However, unexploded bombs are still on the island and in the waters. You are forbidden to get within two miles of Kahoolawe. Back off, buddy.
BUT, there is a way!
Lots of work is going on to heal Kahoolawe by putting in trees, restoring historical sites and a whole lot more. And they take volunteers for the work crews.
If you want to do your duty to Kahoolawe, send an email with your contact info and experience to Volunteer Coordinator Jackson Bauer at jbauer@kirc.hawaii.gov.
