HOST General Membership Meeting Minutes of April 5, 2001
Attendees: 41
Call to Order:
The bi-monthly HOST General Membership meeting was held on Thursday, April 5, 2001. The meeting was called to order by
Robin Bond, Chair, at 1416, at Club 14, USCG ISC Honolulu.
Discussion:
Mr. Robin Bond, Chair for the HOST Advisory Board opened the meeting by introducing Ms. Pat Pettigrew as the Facilitator of this meeting.
Asian Development Bank Conference:
Captain Gilbert Kanazawa informed the membership of the upcoming Asian Development Bank (ADB) Conference to be held at the Hawaii Convention Center the week of 6 May. Although the maritime industry is not directly involved with the ADB’s activities, their presence in Hawaii may impact the activities on the waterfront. All waterfront facilities are urged to review their security procedures and to keep extra vigilance during that week. Also, expect traffic delays and other inconveniences around the area of the Hawaii Convention Center. There will be three (3) cruise ships arriving in Honolulu the same week, and the waterfront will be busy with visiting tourists.
The USCG Marine Safety Office is writing a contingency plan in preparation for the event. The FBI is closely monitoring this conference due to the controversy that has followed the ADB’s past meetings. The State Civil Defense is the lead agency for coordinating the State’s security activities for the conference. The Marine Safety Office in conjunction with HOST will be holding a meeting at 1000, 17 April 2001 at Club 14 on Sand Island to discuss security concerns related to the Asian Development Bank Conference.
History of HOST and its Four-Year Achievements:
Mr. Terry O’Halloran provided the membership with a brief review of HOST’s accomplishments over the past four years. Since HOST’s inception on February 13, 1997, HOST has developed 10 SOP’s, established the Dr. Doug Vann Award to recognize people who have contributed to the maritime industry, and provided open forums to address safety and environmental concerns of the maritimeindustry.
“In the Water Boat Show”:
Mr. Mike Nelson from Ocean Sports Productions informed the membership of the upcoming “In the Water Boat Show” which will be held on May 26-27, 2001 at the Ko Olina Marina.
Update on EPIRB Bill (S.B. 216):
Bill Mossman updated the membership on the status of the EPIRB Bill. The Senate Bill introduced by Senator Cal Kawamoto, initially passed through two committees without the amendment that added the use of a VHF radio. The House TRN & WLV Committees reviewed the Bill and amended it with the HOST supported amendment. The House JHA committee then held the Bill leading to its demise.
Dive Forum:
The dive forum was lead by a panel of six individuals representing different areas: Mr. Mike Goff, Ms. Teri Leicher, Mr. Jim Meyer (Ocean Concepts), Mr. David Pence (UH Dive Office), Mr. Brad Rimell (Sause Brothers), and Lt. Mark Willis (USCG MSO). Ms. Pettigrew asked the panel the following questions: What do you think are the real safety issues with diving here in Hawaii? How would you solve the issue of night dive lights/dive flags? Comments about the state’s proposed new diving regulations.
Teri was concerned with safety and the need for a hyper baric chamber. She felt someone needed to deal with decompression sickness. Jim indicated that things could go wrong, even if you do everything correctly. Dave, who works with divers on the university campus, felt that accidents could be traced back to an error in judgment. He encouraged divers to continue their education. Brad felt the safety issue on their part is where other people were conducting their business. Mark stressed the importance of diver education and explained the types of lights people can display on their boat. The colors should be red, over white, over red.
Jim felt divers need to presume that boaters cannot see them in the water. Boaters won’t run over you on purpose. Divers need to realize that on the surface, it is not easy to be seen, so it’s very important to stay close to the floaters. There needs to be a paradigm shift in thought to assume responsibility to stay away from boaters.
It was suggested that people need to be better educated to dive at night. Divers also had to be aware that just because they had a certification to dive, doesn’t mean that you are prepared to dive in all waters. Some people are exceeding their physical and mental ability, which gets them into trouble in the water. It was noted that some dive instructors break the rules and do not follow the instructor to diver ratio.
Carol She’, from DLNR’s Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation,agreed to send Robin a copy of the State’s proposed new diving regulations, so that it could be distributed to the members of HOST. Currently, there is no boater distance requirement to avoid divers. Boaters can now be located right on top of the diver. Boaters are only required to go slow, no wake.
Jim informed the membership that there is a risk in everything we do. People cannot regulate good judgment. People need to remember that even if they completed everything perfectly, something terrible could go wrong.
Announcements:
Lt. Cmdr. Lane Johnson informed the membership of a proposal for a “Marine Exchange”, which would serve as a one-stop site for vessel traffic. A web-based program would be developed that has real time vessel arrivals and departures. If anyone is interested in this idea, please let him know. Johnson will make a presentation at the next HOST meeting in June.
Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned at 1613.
The next General Membership meeting will be on June 14th, at 1400.