Hawaiian Electric crews made significant progress in restoring power to affected customers across Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi Island and Maui County overnight. More than 40,000 of the utility's customers are still without power as of Tuesday morning due to the impacts of the storm.
HECO says crews will continue to focus on completing damage assessments, including using helicopters and drones to help in remote areas with rugged terrain.
About 10,750 of those are on the Big Island, primarily in Puna area, North and South Kona, North and South Kohala, Hamakua and South Hilo. There was extensive damage to utility poles and lines in Kohala. Access to Upper Puna is hindered by vegetation around and in the power lines. Tree trimmers have been called in to cut back vegetation impacted by the storm.
The utility says that customers in some parts of Hawaiʻi Island could be without power for weeks, especially in heavily damaged rural areas. Crews from Oʻahu were sent to help with restoration efforts. In total, 21 transmission or subtransmission lines were affected by the storm. 11 of them have been repaired as of Tuesday morning.
About 27,200 Oʻahu customers were without power, mostly in parts of Honolulu, Leeward and Windward O‘ahu. 30 transmission and subtransmission lines were affected by the storm and 13 have been restored. 10 damaged poles in central Oʻahu that carry subtransmission lines are still being repaired. Crews are also working on reconnecting Hoʻohana Solar to help stabilize the electrical grid.
HECO is asking Oʻahu customers from Salt Lake to East Oʻahu with electricity to conserve energy through Tuesday to ensure adequate power generation. The utility suggests turning off or reducing the use of air conditioners, delaying hot showers, laundry, and dishwashing, and minimizing cooking until later in the evening to help conserve electricity.
Approximately 2,100 customers are still without power on Maui. Crews are focused on repairs in Kula, Alaluana, Olinda, Pi‘iholo, and Hā‘ikū and pocket outages in West Maui, Central and South Maui, East Maui, Moloka‘i and Lāna‘i. Large, downed trees in Upcountry Maui are being cleared in certain areas before repairs can be made. Maui had 9 transmission and subtransmission lines affected by the storm. 6 have been restored.
HECO is part of the Western Region Mutual Assistance Group and has requested personnel from mainland utilities to help with post-storm power restoration. HECO anticipates about 100 crew members to arrive as early as Tuesday and will begin work on Wednesday.
Click here for HECO's outage maps by island.
Customers can call the listed numbers to report a downed or damaged power line, which should always be treated as energized and dangerous.
- Hawaiʻi Island: 1-855-304-9191
- Maui County: 1-855-304-8181
- Oʻahu: 1-855-304-1212
Over 100 Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative customers were without power as of Tuesday morning. Thousands were without power at the height of the outages. Click here for KIUC's outage map.
Emergency officials are advising the public to avoid using elevators while power is unstable. An outage can cause elevators to stop unexpectedly and potentially trap occupants. People who are physically able to do so are advised to use the stairs instead of elevators until power conditions have stabilized.
To help others or find resources in the wake of Hurricane Lala, click here.
