A team of public health and environmental science experts convened in February at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) to refine the tools for the Red Hill Independent Health Registry, which will track long-term health effects from the 2021 jet fuel spill that contaminated Oʻahu’s drinking water.
Led by the Thompson School Registry Hub, the two-day Scientific Oversight Workshop brought together local and national experts to review protocols and ensure the registry collects accurate and meaningful health data.
“Our team at the Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health leads and coordinates the Registry’s Scientific Oversight Working Group,” said Catherine Pirkle, the registry’s scientific director and public health professor at UH Mānoa. “From the start, we have recognized the benefits of convening an interdisciplinary group of international experts…to support our efforts.”
The registry, developed by UH’s Office of Strategic Health Initiatives, aims to track health outcomes and provide resources for those affected by the spill. On November 20, 2021, an estimated 27,000 gallons of Jet Propellant-5 leaked from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, with over 5,500 gallons contaminating the Navy-managed drinking water system serving Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and surrounding communities. About 90,000 people were exposed or at risk, and many continue to report health issues.
“JABSOM is working closely with our partners at the Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health, the Water Resources Research Center at Mānoa, the University Health Partners of Hawaiʻi, and experts from across the country to develop ways to help learn about the impacts of the Red Hill exposure,” said Lee Buenconsejo-Lum, JABSOM associate dean for academic affairs.
Formal registry enrollment is set to begin in mid-2025, with pre-registration now open.
