Kahawai's parents were the founders of the Church of Christ of the Redeemed of the Lord who bought the 10-acre parcel from another church group.

Kahawai said she has a congregation of about 40 members.

"We have our Sunday school and our worship service and on Sunday we have our young people's meeting in the evening," said Kahawai.

Neighbors say they don’t hold any ill-will against the church, and they understand it’s lack of funds to deal with the immediate threat of the unstable hillside.

In fact, the pastor went down to the governor’s office with the affected residents to plea for help.

"I don’t have the money, meaning the church. I speak on behalf of the church,

we don't have the funds," said Kahawai.

The church hopes if it can somehow get a loan, it can pay for the damaged homes and for any hillside stabilization or boulder removal.

In the meantime, the side street continues to draw onlookers like Pat Rivera, who came to check on a cousin who lives in the area.

"Someone could have gotten killed," said Rivera, who is a former Kallihi resident.