People who made a difference in Hawaii in 2007

18. Mike Dyer, a well-respected real estate agent on Kauai’s North Shore who in the early 1970s managed Ka Loko Reservoir for then owner C. Brewer, is a key witness in the investigation of the breach of Ka Loko Dam. he told Hawaii Reporter how he’d documented unsafe activity at the dam in the late 1990s and reported it to both the dam’s owner, automobile mogul James Pflueger, and to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Kauai office. Dyer noted construction with heavy equipment along the edge of the Ka Loko Dam, which fronts the reservoir. Dyer became greatly troubled when he saw the dam’s main safety feature, a concrete spillway about 15 to 20 feet wide located 8 to 10 feet below the dam, was no longer visible, and instead was completely covered by dirt. With a background in engineering, experience in the Peace Corps with earthen dams, and the knowledge he had of Ka Loko as its previous caretaker, Dyer knew right away the serious implication the covering of the spillway had on the dam’s integrity. Too much water in the dam would flow over the top eroding the dam’s structure instead of being guided safely down the spillway. Substantial erosion would mean the dam would not hold. With Ka Loko filling up to as much as 500 million gallons of water, Dyer feared the worst could happen. His warnings were never heeded or even acknowledged. He has become a key witness in the criminal and civil cases against Pflueger. for more click here