Vice Adm. John Wade is face of Navy’s Red Hill response
TL;DR - The officer the Pentagon has tasked with overseeing the defueling of the Navy’s Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility has for Hawaii residents in many ways become the face of the Navy.
Vice Adm. John Wade has a mixture of Navy, Army, Marine, Air Force and Coast Guard service members as well as federal civilians and contractors under his command at Joint Task Force Red Hill working to remove 104 million gallons of fuel, which sits just 100 feet above a critical aquifer that most of Oahu relies on for drinking water.
“I am honored to lead this team,” Wade said during an interview at his office on Ford Island, shifting attention from himself to highlight his team. Most of the civilians working at Red Hill and several of the service members, he noted, have deep roots in the islands. Wade said he has sought not just their technical insight, but also their cultural knowledge as he tries to repair deeply damaged relationships.
February 20, 2023: Vice Adm. John Wade is face of Navy’s Red Hill response, Honolulu Star-Advertiser