KANEOHE, Oahu, Hawaii -- Dozens of graves at the State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe are sinking. On Memorial Day state officials told KITV 4 News why they think the problem is happening.

Visitors can find dirt on many graves instead of grass even though they have been laying for a year or two. Many of the graves are uneven and shifting.

There are more than 100 sunken grave stones at the State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe and the problem has worsened with the heavy rain that has hit in the last six months.

State officials hired an engineer to study the problem.

"We found that there's an underground stream here that erodes that portion of the cemetery big time," Maj. Gen. Robert Lee said.

The engineer found that rain comes from these hills above the cemetery, flowing into a stream that runs underneath. That's why some graves look fine, while others are uneven and full of dirt, instead of grass. Officials say the solution is complex.

"We're going to ask the governor and the Legislature for a capital improvement project to increase the swale and go upstream so we can divert that water down to the gully," Lee said.

Sharlynne Kiyabu went to visit her husband's niche in the cemetery. Just above the niches cracks in the hillside and exposed pipes from erosion can be seen.

"It's sad that there is erosion underground and of course the families that are suffering from the graves sinking. it is terrible," Kiyabu said.

The governor said she didn't know about the specific problems here, so KITV 4 News reporter Keoki Kerr showed her. "Anytime there's an issue at one of the veteran's cemeteries it's important not just for those who died for our country, but for those who are currently in the military to know that they won't be forgotten," Lingle said.

Another problem is the lack of staff. There are just five maintenance staff workers for the cemetery. The National Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl has tripled the staff for a slightly smaller cemetery.

"We're going to add a few more, but what we need hope to do also is to marshal our resources, because i do have maintenance people in other organizations within the Department of Defense," Lee said.

State officials don't know how much it will take to fix these problems, but they say they will find the money to do that, to help fix the graves of the people who served our country.