UPDATE: 5:30 p.m.

Power restoration efforts continued across Hawaii today as crews worked to repair widespread storm damage caused by the Kona-low system, with tens of thousands of customers still without electricity across several islands.

Hawaiian Electric Co. said about 114,000 customers statewide remained without power as of 5 p.m., even after crews restored electricity to more than 186,000 customers earlier in the day.

On Oahu, about 70,000 customers — roughly 23% of the utility’s customers on the island — remained without electricity as crews assessed damage to high-voltage transmission lines that carry power from Leeward Oahu over the Koʻolau ridgeline to Windward Oahu and East Honolulu.

Utility officials said a helicopter was used earlier today to inspect the storm-damaged transmission infrastructure along the mountain ridgeline. “Repairing damage resulting from the storm could take anywhere from hours to days or even longer as crews will need to navigate mountainous terrain,” the company said in an update.

Crews are prioritizing repairs to major transmission equipment capable of restoring electricity to the largest number of customers before moving on to smaller neighborhood outages.

Across Maui County, about 15,700 customers remained without electricity, with the hardest-hit areas including Upcountry, South, Central and East Maui.

Utility officials said repair work in some locations has been slowed by flash flooding, downed trees and road closures — including a major sinkhole reported in South Maui that has blocked access for repair crews.

On Hawaii island, about 28,300 customers were still without power, with most outages concentrated in Puna, North and South Kona, North Kohala and South Hilo.

The utility said more than 47,000 customers on the island had their power restored earlier today.

Officials warned that hazardous weather conditions, flooding and blocked roads are continuing to slow restoration efforts statewide and that some communities could remain without power overnight.

Residents across the islands are being urged to prepare for the possibility of extended outages through the remainder of the weekend as the Kona-low storm continues moving through the state.

12:30 p.m.

Power restoration on Oahu could take hours to days — or even longer — as repair crews assess major transmission damage caused by the Kona-low storm.

Officials with Hawaiian Electric said Saturday that about 76,000 customers on Oahu remain without electricity as crews focus on repairing storm-damaged high-voltage transmission lines that carry power from Leeward Oahu across the Koʻolau Range to Windward Oahu and East Honolulu.

A specialized helicopter was finally cleared around 11 a.m. to begin inspecting the damaged lines along the ridgeline. Depending on what crews find, the company warned restoration could take anywhere from several hours to days or longer.

Utility officials said their immediate priority is restoring the major transmission equipment that will return electricity to the largest number of customers as quickly as possible before crews move on to smaller neighborhood outages.

“There are smaller outages within large outages, and we’ll circle back on the neighborhood-level work once we can get the large transmission lines back online,” said Jim Alberts, senior vice president and chief operations officer.

The outages are part of a wider disruption caused by the Kona-low storm affecting several islands.

Across the state, more than 111,000 customers were without power earlier today. In addition to Oahu outages, about 10,000 customers remained without electricity in parts of Maui County, while roughly 25,000 customers were without power on Hawaii island, mainly in Puna and the North and South Kona, North Kohala and South Point districts.

Utility officials said hazardous weather, flooding and road closures continue to slow repair work, especially in rural areas on the neighbor islands, and warned residents statewide to prepare for the possibility of extended outages as the Kona-low storm continues through the weekend.

Customers can view current outages and report outages on HECO’s outage map at hawaiianelectric.com Opens in a new tab.

Saturday, 8:20 a.m.

Over 111,000 Hawaiian Electric Co. customers are without power today with the vast majority on Oahu, company officials said.

About 72,000 Oahu customers, 20,000 in Maui County and 19,000 on the Big Island were without power this morning, HECO’s 8 a.m. update said.

On Oahu, a “majority of those who don’t have electricity are in the windward and east Honolulu areas.” Officials said crews restored power for about 65,000 customers overnight.

“Today, they will be attempting to restore two of the three storm-damaged high-voltage transmission lines that carry power from Leeward Oahu over the Koolau to Windward Oahu and east Honolulu. The third transmission line has been out of service since the Feb. 8 storm that damaged a structure near the top of the ridge. A specialized helicopter is needed to carry the necessary equipment to make the repairs, and it has not been available,” Hawaiian Electric officials said.

On Maui, outage areas include South, Upcountry and East Maui where restoration has been delayed by hazardous weather conditions and road closures.

And on Hawaii island, the outages are in Puna, North and South Kona, North Kohala, and South Point.

Click here Opens in a new tab to view current outages and report outages in your area.

10:25 p.m.

Soon after power was restored for many East Honolulu and Hawaii Kai customers tonight, it went out again.

Hawaiian Electric’s outage map shows that power went out again at about 9:11 p.m. for over 13,000 customers from AIna Haina to Hawaii Kai to Waimanalo. Other areas in the outage include Hahaione, Hawaii Loa Ridge, Portlock, Kalama Valley, Koko Marina and Niu Valley.

The latest outage is in addition to nearly 2,500 customers in some of the same areas who have been without power since 7:17 a.m., according to HECO’s outage map. Neither outage report had an estimated time of restoration.

In all, more than 130,000 HECO customers were still without power, the vast majority on Oahu.

8:30 p.m.

Hawaiian Electric crews restored power to 29,000 customers after hazardous weather conditions damaged the transmission line serving both Windward Oahu and the Hawaii Kai and East Honolulu areas.

About 123,000 customers are still without power in various locations across Oahu. According to HECO, some customers on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island who are currently experiencing outages are expected to remain without electricity overnight. As long as weather conditions are safe, crews plan to work into the night to restore power.

For Maui County, about 5,000 customers are without power in various areas, including Upcountry and East Maui. HECO is advising those customers to prepare for extended outages overnight due to hazardous conditions affecting the roads.

On Hawaii island, about 3,600 customers are without power, primarily in Puna, North and South Kona. About 660 customers in the Kaloko area and 90 customers in the Milolii area should plan to be without power overnight.

“Because of the dynamic nature of the storm system, outage numbers represent a snapshot in time and are subject to change as additional customers are restored and more outages occur, sometimes in the same area,” HECO wrote in an advisory.

Click here Opens in a new tab to view current outages and report outages in your area.

5:45 p.m.

Hawaiian Electric is advising customers on Oahu and in Maui County to prepare to be without power overnight.

The utility company said around 4 p.m. that crews were making progress restoring power to about 121,020 customers on Oahu, Hawaii Island and parts of Maui County affected by severe thunderstorms and powerful winds, but that some outages may run into Saturday.

On Oahu alone, about 115,300 customers were without power across the island as of 4 p.m. with Hawaiian Electric crews planning to work into the night to restore power as long as weather conditions are safe.

About 4,500 customers on Maui also were without power and are advised to prepare for what the utility company said could be extended overnight outages due to ongoing hazardous weather conditions and delays until certain roads are reopened to safely address repairs.

About 1,240 customers on Lanai have had power restored after it went out earlier in the day.

On Hawaii Island, about 1,220 customers were without power as of 4 p.m., primarily in Volcano and North Kona and South Kona areas.

Overall, Hawaiian Electric has about 310,789 customers on Oahu, 91,234 on Hawaii Island and 72,218 in Maui County.

The company noted that because of the dynamic nature of the storm system, outage numbers have fluctuated as some customers have power restored and more outages occur, sometimes in the same area.

Customers can view current outages and report outages on the company’s online outage map at hawaiianelectric.com, and on a Hawaiian Electric mobile app.

“Hawaiian Electric understands that people need to know when their power will be restored and is working to keep outage maps and social media updated with information as it becomes available,” the company said in a statement. “Our priorities for restoration emphasize safety and essential community services. Restoration also will take place in a manner designed to affect the greatest number of customers first.”

The company also asks customers who see fallen power lines to report them by phone but to also stay at least 30 feet or more away and assume they are energized and dangerous.

Customers witnessing dangerous situations, such as downed power lines or sparking electrical equipment, are advised to call 911 or Hawaiian Electric toll-free “trouble lines” at 855-304-1212 on Oahu, 855-304-8181 for Maui County and 855-304-9191 on Hawaii island.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE

Hawaiian Electric has urged customers in Hawaii Kai and other portions of East Honolulu to prepare for possible extended outages lasting overnight or longer.

Meanwhile, the number of customers without power has continued to grow. As of 2 p.m., the count had risen to about 113,800 across Oahu and 15,600 customers in parts of Maui County.

The utility company said East Honolulu relies on power lines that bring electricity to the area from Windward Oahu, and that two of these lines running along the base of the Koolau range near Waimanalo and crossing over the ridgeline into East Honolulu have been damaged. That has left one operating line to service the area.

If the continued Kona storm damages the remaining line, steep terrain and hazardous weather conditions will make it difficult for crews to safely access the area for repairs and will delay restoration, Hawaiian Electric said.

In Maui County, the company said crews are working to restore power in various areas of Maui, Lanai and a “pocket area” on Molokai.

“Hawaiian Electric’s response may be delayed as crews are not able to make repairs in dangerous weather conditions,” the company said in a statement. “Hawaiian Electric crews and contractors have been deployed across Oahu, Maui County and Hawaii Island to address outages as the powerful storm system is expected to make its way across the island chain throughout the weekend. All customers are urged to prepare for the possibility of extended outages.”

1:50 p.m.

The number of customers with no electricity has risen to around 110,000 on Oahu as of about 1:30 p.m. and is widely spread over most of the island, according to Hawaiian Electric.

On Maui, the utility company reported about 7,200 customers being without power, along with about 1,240 on Lanai. No major outages with known customers affected was reported for Hawaii island or Molokai.

Kauai Island Utility Cooperative reported that 15 customers were without power, down from 18 shortly before noon.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE

Electricity service has been knocked out around the state amid the Kona storm today, affecting more than 17,000 customers mainly in several areas of Oahu but also on Maui and Lanai where major outages have also been reported by Hawaiian Electric.

After days of on-again, off-again rain, Hawaii is now also experiencing strong southerly winds as part of the Kona-low system. The National Weather Service predicts maximum sustained winds of up to 40 mph, with stronger gusts as high as 70 mph, especially in down-slope windward areas. Oahu, and Kauai and Maui counties are under a high wind warning until 6 a.m. Sunday.

The biggest reported outage for an area as of shortly after 11 a.m. was in Kailua and Waimanalo affecting about 3,000 customers.

In neighboring Windward Oahu communities, power was reported to be out for about 1,900 customers in Kaneohe and for about 740 customers between Waimanalo and Hawaii Kai.

Power also was out for about 1,400 customers from Kahaluu to Laie.

In Wahiawa, power was out for about 2,200 customers.

In parts of urban Honolulu, about 1,800 customers from Waikiki to Kahala were without electricity, as were about 1,500 customers in Kalihi and surrounding areas.

West Oahu power outages affected about 1,700 customers in the Ewa, Kapolei and Makakilo communities. There were also about 400 customers without power in Makaha, Nanakuli and Waianae.

On the North Shore of Oahu, about 300 customers were without power in the Kawailoa, Pupukea and Sunset Beach neighborhoods.

Hawaiian Electric reported 13 outages on Maui, affecting about 1,500 customers in Kahului, Wailuku and West Maui. The utility company also said 100 customers on Lanai lost power.

There were no reported outages on Hawaii island shortly before noon, according to Hawaiian Electric.

On Kauai, where electricity is provided by the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative, only 18 customers were reported to have been without power shortly before noon.

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