Honolulu residents and visitors looking to pay their respects at the Eternal Flame Memorial will find the tribute to fallen heroes temporarily unlit due to a blocked gas line. The state of Hawai‘i Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS) is on top of the issue, actively working to identify and fix the cause of the blockage. According to official statements, this type of malfunction is out of the ordinary, reassuring the public that there’s no safety concern as the gas supply has been switched off and there are no signs of vandalism.
Efforts on Friday to quickly clear the obstruction weren’t successful, even with Hawai’i Gas Co. crews attempting to forcefully blow the clog away with a high-pressure air burst. The attempt, aimed to reestablish flow between the meter and the flame, didn’t pan out, and now the plan is to possibly replace the affected piping. DAGS expects to unsurprisingly know more sometime next week.
The Eternal Flame’s significance isn’t lost on officials or onlookers. “DAGS is working tirelessly to repair this as soon as possible,” DAGS Director and Comptroller Keith Regan stated. “The Eternal Flame burns endlessly in remembrance of the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. We understand the importance of maintaining this memorial to honor those who lost their lives defending our freedom,” Regan told the Department of Accounting and General Services…