Aloha Hawaii….

by Tim Ard

It has been almost thirty days since we set foot in this USA paradise. It has been an awesome training experience. I wish all of you could have been here with us and you would have enjoyed everything and everyone as we have. But now sadly it is time to leave. We are still happy! We miss home, family and friends, so its not that hard to depart. We take with us many memories.

I feel we have learned so much being with the amazing workers of Hawaii DOT. They are a “Spirit of Aloha” group and definitely on Hawaii Time. They hold a true concern for their co-workers, family and the Island visitors.

The past few weeks have been some of the most unusual weather weeks they have experienced in over five years. Water, storms, more water, more storms have water logged the mountains, streams and sadly effected the roads and woodlands. They have a good bit of work ahead to get everything back to picture perfect. These folks are dedicated to doing that.

It made me realize how important the Department of Transportation workers are to our life styles, whether island or metro Atlanta. You see over here, you have just a few roads to get where you need to go. When one is blocked, you go nowhere. There are no side streets to maneuver on. Your stuck! No matter where you are Kauai or Atlanta the DOT has to keep things flowing. They are an important part to first response in all states when a storm/disaster hits.

It is so important in the training that I make sure to pass to them useful information to make their jobs easier and safer. It’s back to basics every time so I don't miss any important details. Planning is the ultimate key to safety and productivity in storm situations. We can’t take for granted that anyone or everyone understands the process… and make sure they apply it every time when approaching the scene.

You can follow some of the activities on Face Book on our Forest Applications Training Page….

Thank you Hawaii for the opportunity to work Island Style! It has been a blessed month – Mahalo and Aloha!