Power slowly being restored to West Maui; most of Upcountry back online

Hawaiian Electric has restored power to one of three main transmission lines serving West Maui and restored service to some customers in Napili, Puukolii and Mahinahina where essential public services, such as water pumps and first responder facilities, are located, the utility said in a news release Friday afternoon.

Crews are continuing work to restore remaining pockets in these areas and restoring additional essential public services and facilities serving first responders in the Kapalua area. The number of customers restored is still relatively small and the aim is for additional circuits to be brought online Friday night and this weekend.

Restoring transmission lines is an essential first step in the restoration process, Hawaiian Electric said. Transmission lines are the backbone of the electric system, bringing electricity from generating stations to neighborhoods. From there, substations and neighborhood circuits need to be repaired to restore service to customers, the utility said.

Hawaiian Electric is currently focusing on:

≤ Restoring remaining pockets of customers Upcountry, where an estimated 70 customers remain without power.

≤ Advising customers in other areas of West Maui without power to prepare for extended outages that could last several weeks. Crews are continuing to conduct additional damage assessments by helicopter in the air and on the ground and starting restoration repairs in areas that are safe and accessible.

≤ Reminding everyone to exercise caution as certain areas are brought back online and to stay away from downed power lines by at least 30 feet or more (at least two car lengths). If you see a downed power line, assume it is energized and dangerous. Report downed lines immediately by calling Hawaiian Electric’s Maui Trouble Line at (808) 871-7777.

About 300 Hawaiian Electric employees and contractors from Maui, Oahu, Hawaii island, Molokai and Lanai are working on the massive damage assessment, repair and restoration effort. The company’s Incident Management Team continues to coordinate closely with Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency and other emergency response organizations.

Updates are also available at hawaiianelectric. com/windstormresponse.