Palace Sustains Minor Damage During Earthquake
by Maila Van Heukelem, Collections Manager
Plaster damage on the second floor ceiling.
At 7:07 a.m. on Sunday, October 15, 2006 an earthquake measuring 6.7 struck off Waikoloa, Hawai`i, quickly followed by a second earthquake and numerous aftershocks. Electricity at `Iolani Palace went down shortly after the second earthquake and was restored 12 hours later, at around 7:00 p.m.
As a result of the quake, doors of the pie safe opened in the Imprisonment Room and the small writing desk in the room moved until it was touching the sofa. A large calabash shifted near the edge of the table in the Music Room, doors swung wide open on the bookcase in the Chamberlain's office (although the contents remained on the shelves), and three stacks of books shifted over on their shelves in a storage room. Fortunately, no artifacts were damaged.
Although there was some
shifting of furniture during the quake (pictured here is the desk in the Imprisonment Room touching the sofa), no damage occurred to the artifacts.
Visible damage to `Iolani Palace included loss of paint and some plaster from ceilings in the second floor. The hall (especially the edge of the skylight dome), Music Room, and Imprisonment Room were all affected. The Kana`ina Building sustained damage to the plaster ceiling around the rim of the stained glass skylight and outside the board room. Joints of a filled wall opening in the board room cracked and shifted. Large cracks running the width of both entrance arches at the Barracks were also discovered. There was no damage noted to the Coronation Pavilion.
The day of the event, the housekeeping/ maintenance supervisor reported to work to shut down mechanical systems and prevent potential damage upon the return of electricity. The following day, the collections manager surveyed the collections and buildings, photographing damages before clean-up. Preservation architect Glenn Mason surveyed the buildings on October 20 and a team of five surveyors checked the historic buildings on October 24. The team members included three representatives from the state's Department of Accounting and General Services, a representative from State Civil Defense, and a staff member from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Damage information has been forwarded to the Department of Land and Natural Resources, which oversees The Friends of `Iolani Palace lease agreement with the state of Hawai`i.
Cracks widened noticeably in the dome of the ceiling in the Kana`ina Building, where The Friends' administrative offices are located. Cracks were also noted in the archway of `Iolani Barracks.