Hawaiian remains found on Pupukea Road, City project to move forward

NORTH SHORE—A cave that is home to a Hawaiian burial was found near Pupukea Road in 2009 during an archaeological survey performed to identify cultural sites for the Pupukea Rock Fall Mitigation Project, where the City and County of Honolulu will be installing safety nets and fences to prevent rocks from falling into traffic on the steep and curvy road. To discourage future disturbance, the burial is set to be permanently sealed with mortar and rebar.

Located on City land, the burial was found by Cultural Surveys Hawaii (CSH), the contract archaeologist for the project, and was the only previously unknown Hawaiian cultural site found during the study. According to meeting minutes, CSH did community outreach and consulted with council members to find the best way to care for the burial.

“They found just one cave and they recommended just closing it up,” said Antya Miller of the North Shore Neighborhood Board.

According to the minutes from an Oahu Island Burials Council meeting that took place in June, the council reviewed a “burial treatment plan” drafted by David Shidler and Jack Krone of CSH, which was presented in May for the council’s review to make a decision on how to preserve the remains in place. The council explored three options for burial treatments, including leaving the cave as it is, improving the dry stack wall and sealing the cave, or sealing the cave with mortar and rebar for stronger protection.

During the meeting, council member Alice Greenwood of the Wahiawa Hawaiian Civic club made a motion to seal the cave with mortar and rebar, and was seconded by council member Kehaulani Kruse. According to the document, the motion to ‘malama the bones in the cave’ and to seal the cave with mortar and rebar passed unanimously.

Meeting attendees discussed the possibility of the North Shore’s “homeless” using the cave as shelter, however it was noted that the remains are nearly un-accessible and showed no evidence of use. The council concluded that “homeless” use of the cave was not an issue.

The council determined that the vibrations from the road work will not affect the burial. The construction is expected to be completed in four to five months and will install a net-like drapery over the loose rocks that line the road as a rocky wall. In addition, a fence will be installed to prevent larger boulders from falling onto the steep and winding road, and further down into the residential area below.

One lane of Pupukea Road will be closed to traffic during construction, which is set to begin during the busiest time of year for North Shore traffic. However, the construction will begin, the City said, “around the end of this year or beginning of next year,” which is the tail end of the busy surf season.

The City accepted McGraw-Hill Construction’s bid at approximately $1,464,000. The project is expected to be completed in four to five months.

The Hawaii Independent is currently inquiring the date of the bones as well as the details of the sealing process.