The U.S. military will begin draining 1 million gallons of fuel from three pipelines at a World War II-era fuel storage facility that leaked petroleum into Pearl Harbor's tap water last year and sickened thousands of people.
The pipelines, which run about 3 miles from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in the mountains above Pearl Harbor down to the military base, will be drained one by one beginning Tuesday.
The operation is expected to last six days.
The fuel has been sitting in the pipes since the military suspended the use of the Red Hill facility last year after it leaked petroleum into a drinking water well serving 93,000 people in and around Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
Nearly 6,000 people, mostly military personnel and their families, sought medical attention for rashes, sores, nausea and other ailments after drinking and bathing in the contaminated water.
A Navy investigation found a series of mistakes over the course of six months caused the spill.
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Fuel from the three pipelines will go to above-ground storage tanks and fuel barges, which will then supply Air Force jets and Navy ships at the base, officials said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.