WAIANAE, Hawaii (KHON2) — State officials with the Department of Land and Natural Resources started 24/7 enforcement at the entrance of the Waianae Small Boat Harbor after two shootings within less than two weeks in August 2024.
HPD’s crime map shows the effort was successful since zero reports have been filed within the past month.
“They were there, crime went down, things got better, communities started feeling great again. And, you know, it’s on us as well, too, right,” said Waianae and Makaha Rep. Chris Muraoka. “But it helps when if we see something, we can tell the police and/or if we see the sheriffs here, we can say, ‘Hey, take a look at this.’”
DLNR officials confirmed that the tent where officers made their presence clear was taken down as of Sunday, Feb. 4 and area businesses said they will be missed.
“If it was later hours, you know, if I had to be here later on, you know, it’s just nice having a presence, you know,” said Dolphins Excursions Hawaii crew member Mandi Rasmussen. “Incidents do happen. But I’m glad they were here. And I mean, I would love them to come back. But, you know, they’ve, they need to be elsewhere, you know?”
Honolulu police said they will continue to respond to emergency calls and make routine checks of the Harbor. Rep. Muraoka said the 24/7 enforcement was a financial strain but the lack of presence does not mean the west side is the wild west.
“The plan that I got that came that came across my desk is they’re pulling the 24-hour support, but they’re supposed to have nighttime, a night shift, ranging, or a rover type of,” he said. “Yes, it’s not completely gone, but no, it’s not the presence that we needed.”
“We really enjoyed them. The men and women that were there. And they were really, really nice, very, very, very sweet people,” Rasmussen said.
Stolen jewels, boa constrictors killing owners, check out Weird News here
The DLNR did not comment on how much the enforcement cost the State — Muraoka said he is working on other enforcement options.