MECO Continues Restoration Work

Downed power line at Hookele and Hana Highway intersection. PC: MECO

Update 4:30 p.m.:   As of 4 p.m. today, Maui Electric crews are working to restore a remaining 1,100 customers in the areas of Kahului, Paia, Haiku, Kaanapali and South Maui by 8 p.m. this evening.

Should customers still be experiencing an outage after 8 p.m., please contact Maui Electric at 871-7777.

Around 2:50 a.m. this morning, about 66,500 customers experienced a widespread outage after a lightning storm affected the island’s electrical grid.

Maui Electric thanks the community for their continued patience and understanding as crews work to safely restore power as quickly as possible.

Update 2 p.m.: MECO says about 55,000 customers are back online in areas of Central, South, West, Upcountry Maui and parts of Haiku. Crews are continuing work to restore power by circuits in these various areas, including repairing damaged electrical equipment and downed power lines.

Update 1:30 p.m.: As of 1 p.m., about 47,000 customers are back online in areas of Central, South, West, East, Upcountry Maui and parts of Haiku after lightning strikes hit the island’s electrical grid and cut power off to about 66,500 customers this morning. Crews are continuing work to restore power by circuits in these various areas, including repairing damaged electrical equipment and downed power lines.

Maui Electric crews are continuing restoration work after an island-wide extensive outage following lightning strikes last night.

UPDATE 1 p.m. from Maui County:

– Hana Highway near Airport Road remains closed due to a downed power pole

– Piilani Highway near Kalepa is closed due to a rockslide. Flooding has also closed Piilani from Kalepa to Kaupo although if need be, emergency services can pass through.

– Kaunoa Senior Center is closed due to power outage.

– Some Division of Motor Vehicles and Licensing offices are closed because the county cannot connect with the state database. Kihei, Kahului, Lahaina and Hana offices are open. Pukalani remains closed.

– University of Hawaii Maui College canceled morning classes for their Kahului campus and resumed classes at 10 a.m. Private schools also canceled classes. State public schools remain open.

– Maui Electric continues to work on restoring power to customers after lightning strikes overnight caused extensive damage and knocked out electricity across the island. No word as to when power will be restored.

– For the latest road closures call 986-1200 for updates.

NOON UPDATE: As of noon, about 43,000 customers on Maui have been brought back online following lightning strikes early this morning that damaged parts of the electrical grid and cut off power to about 66,500 customers.

At this time, crews continue to work on restoring outages in parts of Central, South, West, East, and Upcountry Maui.

Maui Electric asks customers who remain without power to keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed. During a power outage, a fully-stocked free-standing freezer will keep most of your foods frozen for up to seventy-two hours. The freezer section of a refrigerator-freezer will keep most of your foods frozen ten to twenty-four hours.

Maui Electric crews continue to work as safely and quickly as possible to make repairs to the damaged equipment and are actively restoring different parts of the island in phases throughout the day.

UPDATE 11:20 a.m.: As of 11 a.m., about 36,000 customers have been brought back online in parts of Central Maui, South Maui, West Maui and parts of Upcountry.

Maui Electric crews continue to work as safely and quickly as possible to make repairs to the damaged equipment and are actively restoring different parts of the island in phases throughout the day.

In the meantime, Maui Electric asks customers to take the following precautions:

If you see a downed power line, do not touch fallen or low-hanging wires or anything such wires may be touching; assume every wire is still energized and dangerous.

Stay clear of puddles where downed lines may have landed. Stay away and warn others to stay away. Call the Maui Electric Trouble Line at 871-7777 on Maui or 1-877-871-8461 on Molokai and Lanai. Call 911 for immediate emergency help.

UPDATE 10:30 a.m.: As of 10 a.m., about 34,000 customers have been brought back online in parts of Central Maui, South Maui, West Maui and parts of Upcountry.

MECO working on downed power lines on Hana Highway after a storm hit Maui on Oct. 24. PC: Nikki Schenfeld

MECO says that around 2:50 a.m. today, Oct. 24, approximately 66,500 customers on Maui island – Central Maui, South Maui, West Maui, Upcountry, Paia and Haiku area and parts of East Maui – experienced a power outage after lightning hit the electrical system across the island, causing damage to electrical equipment, including downed power lines in various areas.

As of 8 a.m., approximately 14,000 customers have been brought back online in parts of Central Maui, South Maui and West Maui.

Maui Electric crews continue to work as safely and quickly as possible to make repairs to the damaged equipment and are actively restoring different parts of the island in phases throughout the morning.