Jon Halpin lives in Kaloko, a misty neighborhood in the hills of North Kona filled with eucalyptus, silver oaks, and old growth 'ōhi'a.
Halpin said that since Hurricane Lala hit Hawaiʻi Island on Saturday, his neighborhood has looked like a “war zone.”
“It's trees down everywhere, power lines in the road,” Halpin told HPR.
Kaloko was one of the hardest-hit areas in North Kona. The Hawaiʻi County Civil Defense Agency estimated that at least 30 sections of utility line came down just on Kaloko’s main road.
Halpin lost power on Saturday and it has yet to come back on. When he spoke to HPR on Monday, he was driving back from Planet Fitness in Kona where he had gone to take a hot shower, since he's also been without water pressure since the storm.
“We're currently flushing the toilet with our jacuzzi water,” he said.
The Department of Water Supply is having challenges getting water to North Kona while the power’s out since its infrastructure also runs on electricity.
Hawaiian Electric’s latest estimates say pockets of North Kona might not have power until Sunday, meaning Halpin and his neighbors could go more than a week without power.
“We have several neighbors that are needing generators. Their food is going bad in their refrigerators, and Lowe's and Home Depot and Costco are sold out of generators, so that is also an issue right now,” he said.
Stores around the island confirmed to HPR on Tuesday that they were out of generators. Some also reported running low on propane and gas cans.
Across the island, many in Puna are just having their electricity restored or are still without power.
Maile Boggeln and her family in Hawaiian Paradise Park got their power back Tuesday after nearly four days in the dark.
“It's not the first time we've had something like that happen. When we had Iselle, we were without electricity for about 32 days,” Boggeln told HPR.
After Tropical Storm Iselle hit Hawaiʻi Island in 2014, Boggeln’s family got a gas-powered generator. That generator is a lifeline for Boggeln’s mother, who relies on several medical devices that need electricity, including an oxygen generator and a CPAP machine.
Maile Boggeln said her mother’s care was manageable during the power outage with the generator, but it took far more effort to ensure that she was comfortable and could breathe properly.
“The medical needs of somebody that you're working with during a storm like this is just astronomically larger,” Boggeln said.
On Sunday, Boggeln had to navigate the aftermath of the storm to drive her mother to dialysis, which she needs three times a week.
“Thankfully, the highway wasn't too terrible, but all of the traffic lights were not working,” she said.
When it comes to managing power outages during a storm, Boggeln said her family has few options.
“There's no emergency evacuation facility that could handle my mom's care and her level of need. So, really, our only plan is to hunker down and stay home. The best we've been able to do is invest our own money in devices that can support us, but there's only so much that those can do,” she said.
To help others or find resources in the wake of Hurricane Lala, click here.
