Hirono Statement on Red Hill Accountability

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and Chair of the Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, released the following statement on the Navy’s announcement of accountability for individuals responsible for fuel spills at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on Oahu.

“After nearly two years, today the Navy acted to hold certain individuals responsible for the crisis at Red Hill accountable. Accountability being meted out to individuals is important, but true accountability for this disaster requires the Navy to address the systemic command and control failures, and a lack of requisite attention to infrastructure, that caused this disaster to happen.

“As Admiral Paparo said in his investigation into the May and November 2021 Red Hill incidents, ‘a culture of complacency, lack of critical thinking, and lack of timely communication’ contributed to those incidents. I have yet to see adequate evidence that Navy leadership is treating these service-wide issues with the seriousness or urgency they demand. The Navy has an obligation to protect servicemembers and the communities in which it operates, and as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I’ll continue pushing them to make the systemic changes necessary to prevent future incidents.”

As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and Chair of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, Senator Hirono has worked closely with DOD leadership, community leaders in Hawaii, and her Senate colleagues to help ensure the safe and timely defueling and closure of Red Hill. In July, Senator Hirono joined the Hawaii delegation in introducing the Red Hill Impact Act, bipartisan legislation to collect data, study, and help better understand the long-term health impacts of those exposed to water contamination from the Red Hill fuel leak. In December 2022, she joined the Hawaii delegation in calling for congressionally-initiated independent investigation into how DOD and the Navy responded to PFAS-based contamination events at Red Hill. Last year, Senator Hirono secured $1 billion in the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act for defueling and closing Red Hill.

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