Hundreds Still Without Power As Hawaiian Electric Rebuilds Lahaina Infrastructure
Extended power outages are expected to continue in neighboring communities as the work continues.
Crews in West Maui have restored power to about 300 additional Lahaina-area customers in the past two weeks as emergency officials gradually reopen more of the town to residents, according to Hawaiian Electric.
However, some 350 customers in Lahaina remain without electricity after the Aug. 8 wildfire that destroyed most of the town, according to a release Thursday morning by the utility, which controls Maui Electric Co. That includes customers in the Wahikuli area on the northern end where the county is starting to allow residents to by zones.
Those crews have also so far replaced about 180 of the 1,000 or so poles that were destroyed across West Maui amid the windstorms and fires that day, according to Darren Pai, a Hawaiian Electric spokesman.
The utility said in the release that it had restored power within two weeks of the blaze to 95% of customers affected by the fire-related outages in West and Upcountry Maui.
It鈥檚 the same point that Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura stressed to members of Congress earlier this month as they sought more answers into what may have caused the fire.
Kimura told lawmakers that restoring critical power infrastructure in West Maui will take years.
The utility noted Thursday that it鈥檚 working on some 600 feet of 鈥渦nderground electrical infrastructure鈥 to help install a transformer at its Lahainaluna substation, near the Lahaina Bypass road.
That work aims to improve electrical service to the Lahainaluna and Puamana, as well as the area stretching farther south from Launiupoko to Olowalu, it said. Once that transformer is in place, the utility said, it can remove one of the temporary substations set up after the disaster.
The utility said it’s also working to restore a third transmission line along its former route through town using temporary poles. The line will improve reliability to communities in West Maui because it will serve as a backup route, according to the release.
It’s not expected to be completed until the end of 2024, however. In the meantime the communities of Puukolii, Mahinahina, Kaanapali, Napili and Kapalua, can expect to see extended power outages, the release added.
In the weeks after the fire, Kimura and other Hawaiian electric officials have repeatedly stressed in public statements that their electrical crews have worked to restore power and infrastructure to the area despite being affected themselves by the fire.
Nonetheless, Hawaii鈥檚 largest electricity provider has been hit with scores of lawsuits claiming negligence, including a suit filed by Maui County and one on behalf of the utility鈥檚 own shareholders.
Hawaiian Electric, meanwhile, has deflected responsibility, pointing out that Maui fire crews had declared a morning fire sparked by the utility鈥檚 power lines to be contained. A nearby fire in the afternoon swiftly destroyed most of Lahaina, killing at least 97 people, but the utility said that its lines had been de-energized for hours at that point.
Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by a grant from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.
