THE SENATE S.R. NO. 88 THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025 STATE OF HAWAII SENATE RESOLUTION Requesting each branch of the United States military in the State to provide shelters that can withstand hurricanes with winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all of their active and retired personnel and families living in the State.
THE SENATE S.R. NO. 88
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII
THE SENATE
S.R. NO.
88
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII
SENATE RESOLUTION
Requesting each branch of the United States military in the State to provide shelters that can withstand hurricanes with winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all of their active and retired personnel and families living in the State.
WHEREAS, seas further north have begun to warm due to climate change, causing the spawning area for hurricanes near Mexico to expand north; and WHEREAS, these new, warmer northern seas have caused hurricanes that previously would have missed the State to travel toward the State; and WHEREAS, warmer seas increase the prevalence, strength, and breadth of category three, four, and five hurricanes; and WHEREAS, warmer seas caused by climate change have given rise to "super" category five hurricanes, which are hurricanes with winds exceeding two hundred miles-per-hour; and WHEREAS, research estimates that, with existing ocean temperatures, the world will experience one super category five hurricane every eight years, but by 2080 the world is projected to see one super category five hurricane every year, with the northern Pacific Ocean expected to experience the most super category five hurricanes; and WHEREAS, the State was previously protected by cooler surrounding seas, which would cause hurricanes to dissipate as they approached, but rising global ocean temperatures have caused these protective seas to dissipate; and WHEREAS, historically, trade winds approaching the State at lower levels and strong winds in the opposite direction at higher levels would tear approaching hurricanes apart; and WHEREAS, the State has lost two days of trade winds each year for fifty years, resulting in wind-shear protection for less than half of the days of the year and leaving the State more vulnerable to approaching hurricanes during the other half of the year; and WHEREAS, the State is not allowed to call its places of refuge "hurricane shelters" because they do not reach the necessary standards, and few of the State's refuge areas are capable of withstanding even a category two hurricane; and WHEREAS, the State currently only has thirty-two refuge areas that are capable of holding a total of only one hundred thousand people, despite the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management anticipating that even in the case of a category one hurricane approximately two hundred thousand people will seek shelter; and WHEREAS, the State has no shelters that can withstand a category three, four, or five hurricane, and in the event that a hurricane of this magnitude strikes the State there is no place for anyone to go; and WHEREAS, there are approximately one hundred eighty-seven thousand wooden homes in the State, most of which will be damaged or destroyed in a category one hurricane; and WHEREAS, the State is home to more than two hundred fifty thousand active and retired military personnel and their families, most of whom have no safe place to go during a hurricane; and WHEREAS, many of those two hundred fifty thousand active and retired military personnel and their families live in the one hundred eighty-seven thousand wooden homes in the State, which could be strengthened to withstand major hurricanes; and WHEREAS, it is the obligation of each branch of the United States military to protect their active and retired personnel and their families; and WHEREAS, if each branch of the United States military in the State were to provide shelters that would survive winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all two hundred fifty thousand active and retired personnel and their families, it would relieve the State of providing shelters for one fifth of the State's residents; and WHEREAS, if each branch of the United States military in the State were to fund the fortifying of all homes owned by active and retired military personnel, it would greatly relieve the State when it begins to provide grants or tax breaks to citizens fortifying their homes against hurricanes; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that each branch of the United States military in the State is requested to provide shelters that can withstand hurricanes with winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all of their active and retired personnel and families living in the State; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each branch of the United States military in the State is requested to fund the fortification of all homes owned by active and retired military personnel whose homes are deemed able to withstand major hurricanes if strengthened; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Chief of Naval Operations of the United States Navy, Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, and Commandant of the United States Coast Guard. OFFERED BY: _____________________________ Report Title: United States Military; Hurricane Shelter; Hurricane Fortification
WHEREAS, seas further north have begun to warm due to climate change, causing the spawning area for hurricanes near Mexico to expand north; and
WHEREAS, these new, warmer northern seas have caused hurricanes that previously would have missed the State to travel toward the State; and
WHEREAS, warmer seas increase the prevalence, strength, and breadth of category three, four, and five hurricanes; and
WHEREAS, warmer seas caused by climate change have given rise to "super" category five hurricanes, which are hurricanes with winds exceeding two hundred miles-per-hour; and
WHEREAS, research estimates that, with existing ocean temperatures, the world will experience one super category five hurricane every eight years, but by 2080 the world is projected to see one super category five hurricane every year, with the northern Pacific Ocean expected to experience the most super category five hurricanes; and
WHEREAS, the State was previously protected by cooler surrounding seas, which would cause hurricanes to dissipate as they approached, but rising global ocean temperatures have caused these protective seas to dissipate; and
WHEREAS, historically, trade winds approaching the State at lower levels and strong winds in the opposite direction at higher levels would tear approaching hurricanes apart; and
WHEREAS, the State has lost two days of trade winds each year for fifty years, resulting in wind-shear protection for less than half of the days of the year and leaving the State more vulnerable to approaching hurricanes during the other half of the year; and
WHEREAS, the State is not allowed to call its places of refuge "hurricane shelters" because they do not reach the necessary standards, and few of the State's refuge areas are capable of withstanding even a category two hurricane; and
WHEREAS, the State currently only has thirty-two refuge areas that are capable of holding a total of only one hundred thousand people, despite the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management anticipating that even in the case of a category one hurricane approximately two hundred thousand people will seek shelter; and
WHEREAS, the State has no shelters that can withstand a category three, four, or five hurricane, and in the event that a hurricane of this magnitude strikes the State there is no place for anyone to go; and
WHEREAS, there are approximately one hundred eighty-seven thousand wooden homes in the State, most of which will be damaged or destroyed in a category one hurricane; and
WHEREAS, the State is home to more than two hundred fifty thousand active and retired military personnel and their families, most of whom have no safe place to go during a hurricane; and
WHEREAS, many of those two hundred fifty thousand active and retired military personnel and their families live in the one hundred eighty-seven thousand wooden homes in the State, which could be strengthened to withstand major hurricanes; and
WHEREAS, it is the obligation of each branch of the United States military to protect their active and retired personnel and their families; and
WHEREAS, if each branch of the United States military in the State were to provide shelters that would survive winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all two hundred fifty thousand active and retired personnel and their families, it would relieve the State of providing shelters for one fifth of the State's residents; and
WHEREAS, if each branch of the United States military in the State were to fund the fortifying of all homes owned by active and retired military personnel, it would greatly relieve the State when it begins to provide grants or tax breaks to citizens fortifying their homes against hurricanes; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that each branch of the United States military in the State is requested to provide shelters that can withstand hurricanes with winds of over two hundred miles-per-hour for all of their active and retired personnel and families living in the State; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each branch of the United States military in the State is requested to fund the fortification of all homes owned by active and retired military personnel whose homes are deemed able to withstand major hurricanes if strengthened; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Chief of Naval Operations of the United States Navy, Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, and Commandant of the United States Coast Guard.
OFFERED BY: _____________________________
OFFERED BY:
_____________________________
Report Title:
United States Military; Hurricane Shelter; Hurricane Fortification