President’s Planned Visit Prompts Kailua Security Zone

Kailua Bay Security Zone. Image courtesy US Coast Guard.  Click image to view in greater detail.

By Wendy Osher

The first signs of a return presidential holiday in Hawai’i came today with the announcement of an enforced security zone that could go into effect as early as this Friday.

Law enforcement officers with the US Coast Guard will enforce the temporary security zone at Kailua Bay from 6 a.m. on Dec. 21, 2012 to 10 p.m. to Jan. 6, 2013.

The temporary security zone is being implemented to ensure the safety of the president of the United States and his official party.

The zone will remain in effect during the specified duration, unless canceled earlier by the Capt. Joanna Nunan from Port Honolulu.

The US Secret Service is overseeing patrols of the area with coordination that includes participation from the Coast Guard, the Honolulu Police Department, the Marine Corps Base Hawaii, and other federal, state, and county law enforcement agencies.

The maritime security zone includes a portion of Kailua Bay, beginning at Kapoho Point and extending westward to the shoreline near Kailuana Loop. The zone also includes the adjacent canal beginning near Kapoho Point to a point extending the canal way to approximately 150 yards south of the North Kalaheo Avenue road bridge.

Coast Guard officials say a marker will be placed on Kailua Beach; a yellow buoy will be placed on the water; and an orange boom will placed in the canal for visual references of the zone.

Under federal law, the temporary enforcement prohibits any unauthorized person or vessel from entering or remaining within the security zone. Any person entering the zone without the permission of the Coast Guard Captain of the Port is subject to a penalty of not more than $40,000 for each violation, or a criminal penalty resulting in imprisonment of not more than 10 years.