UPDATE: Two Men Burned in Hāʻiku Industrial Accident

By Wendy Osher

Two men from Maui were transported to the hospital with burns from an industrial accident in Hāʻiku on Wednesday afternoon.

The incident was reported at around 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 15, while the contractors were working on power lines for Maui Electric Company, according to company spokesperson Kauʻi Awai-Dickson.

Maui police say one of the employees reached for a temporary jumper line when “a loud noise occurred,” followed by what was described as an “electrical arc.”

According to police reports, the two men, both 26 years old and both from Kīhei, suffered “partial thickness burns” and were transported in stable condition to the Maui Memorial Medical Center for initial treatment, then to Straub Hospital on Oʻahu for further medical care.

The incident knocked out power to an estimated 1,322 customers in Haiku for about an hour before service was restored.