Power restored to 65,000 on Maui; caused by high-voltage short circuit in Māʻalaea

DOE Schools to reopen Aug. 24

All impacted Maui schools are scheduled to reopen on Wednesday, Aug. 24, as normal, according to a Department of Education update. Kamehameha Schools Maui will also return to normal operations on Wednesday, Aug. 24.

Outage began with high-voltage short circuit in substation

All remaining affected customers had power restored by 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022.

The outage was first reported at 2:45 a.m. on Tuesday, and affected an estimated 65,000 customers in various parts of the island. Crews restored power to a majority of affected customers by 10:15 a.m.

Hawaiian Electric spokesperson Shayna Decker said a “high-voltage short circuit occurred at a substation in Mā‘alaea, which triggered generating units to trip offline.”

She described it as “a highly unusual event,” noting that the last outage to affect a large number of Maui customers occurred after a lightning storm in 2017. The company is looking into the cause of the short circuit.

“Mahalo to our customers and communities for their patience as crews worked as quickly as possible to restore power,” she said.

Customers who are still experiencing an outage, are asked to reset their home breaker or contact the Hawaiian Electric Maui County Trouble Line at 808-871-7777.

The Department of Public Works’ Highways Division reports that 35 Maui County traffic signals were impacted by the power outage.

Most traffic signals returned to service quickly, but about a half dozen needed work by Highways Division personnel to return them to full service, according to a county press release.

One signal in Kahului at the intersection of Lono and Wakea avenues remains in flashing mode and is expected to continue in that mode until it can be repaired tomorrow, Aug. 24.

Motorists are asked to make their way through the Lono-Wakea intersection and treat it temporarily as a four-way stop.

PREVIOUS POSTS FROM TUESDAY, AUG. 23

School closures:

As of 6:30 a.m. the following 14 Maui public school campuses will be closed today, Aug. 23, due to ongoing power outages affecting the island. All other public schools remain open at this time. Families are being notified.

West Maui

• King Kamehameha III Elementary
• Princess Nāahiʻenaʻena Elementary
• Lahaina Intermediate
• Lahainaluna High

Upcountry Maui

• Haʻikū Elementary
• Pukalani Elementary
• Kula Elementary
• Kalama Intermediate
• Makawao Elementary
• King Kekaulike High

Central/North Maui

• Pōmaikaʻi Elementary
• Pāʻia Elementary
• Wailuku Elementary (added at 6:30 a.m.)
• ʻĪao Intermediate (added at 6:30 a.m.)

*Kamehameha Schools Maui (ʻAʻapueo) also advised that the Pukalani campus (K-12) will have NO school today due to the outage. Administrators say the KS Maui preschool is also closed for today.

Water conservation urged:

While Hawaiian Electric Co. crews work to fully restore power to Maui island, Maui County Department of Water is asking everyone to conserve water to reduce demand and extend existing supplies. The department relies on electrical pumps for well pumps, water treatment and distribution. 

Water conservation measures include refraining from washing cars or hosing down sidewalks and driveways and not irrigating lawns among other measures.

DMV: Phone and internet service restored at Maui County Service Center in Kahului
All Division of Motor Vehicle & Licensing transactions being accepted

As of noon today, internet and phone service have been restored for offices at the Maui County Service Center in Kahului, except for the Transient Accommodations Tax Office, the Department of Finance reported.

All Division of Motor Vehicle & Licensing transactions are being accepted.

Work is ongoing to ensure that credit and debit card transactions can be processed by staff in the Real Property Tax Division. Following this morning’s power outage, property tax and utility payments were accepted by cash or check only. Receipts were provided manually.

Power has been restored at the Pukalani Satellite Office for the Division of Motor Vehicles & Licensing. The office is open for walk-in customers.

Previous Posts:

UPDATE: (11:24 a.m.)

Hawaiian Electric has restored power to a majority of customers on Maui, with the exception of about 100 customers who remained without power as of 10:15 am. Remaining outages are in parts of Central Maui and pockets of Upcountry and Haʻikū.

An estimated 65,000 customers lost power overnight in various parts of the island at around 2:45 a.m. Crews are currently working to restore power to the remaining customers.

The cause of the outage is still being assessed.

UPDATE: (9:15 a.m.)

Hawaiian Electric crews are continuing work to restore power to a remaining 15,000 customers in areas of Upcountry, East Maui, including Pāʻia and Haʻikū, and pockets in Central and West Maui.

At around 2:45 this morning, an estimated 65,000 customers in various parts of Maui experienced an outage. 

With resources dedicated to currently restoring power, the cause of the outage is still being assessed. This includes having to check equipment and power lines before power can safely be restored to all remaining customers.

“While crews are safely working as quickly as possible to bring everyone back online today an estimated restoration time is currently not able to be provided. We appreciate the public’s continued patience and understanding,” according to a Hawaiian Electric spokesperson.

Mayor Michael Victorino asked Maui residents to be patient and respectful while Hawaiian Electric crews work to restore power. County officials say Maui police officers are directing traffic at intersections where traffic lights are not working.

UPDATE: (7:30 a.m.)

Power has been restored to affected customers in parts of Lahaina and a majority of Central Maui and South Maui areas as of 7 a.m. Crews are working to restore power to remaining areas of West Maui, Upcountry, East Maui, including Pāʻia and Haʻikū and remaining pockets.

A Hawaiian Electric spokesperson on Maui said, “We appreciate your continued patience and understanding as crews safely work as quickly as possible to bring everyone back online.”

The number of affected customers and cause of the outage remains under investigation, and is still being assessed.

UPDATE: (6:30 a.m.)

Hawaiian Electric crews have restored power to parts of Central Maui, including Wailuku and a majority of Kahului and South Maui areas, as of 6 a.m. Crews are working to bring back online remaining affected customers in parts of Upcountry, West Maui and East Maui, including Paia and Haiku. The total number of customers affected and the cause of the outage is under investigation, and is still being assessed.

UPDATE (5:30 a.m.):

Hawaiian Electric crews have restored power to parts of Central Maui, including Wailuku, and are working to bring remaining customers back online in Kahului, South Maui, West Maui, Waihee and Waiehu, Upcountry and East Maui. Total number of customers affected and the cause of the outage is still being assessed. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

UPDATE (4:30 a.m.):

Crews working to restore power to various parts of Maui.

Hawaiian Electric crews are currently working to restore power to parts of South Maui, West Maui, Kahului, Wailuku, Waihee and Waiehu, Upcountry and East Maui. The cause is being assessed.

The outage was first reported at around 3 am.

FIRST POST (3:37 a.m.):

We are receiving reports from various parts of the island of power outages affecting, but not limited to, Kahului, Wailuku, and Lahaina. The outage was reported at around 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022.

We are awaiting an assessment and report from Hawaiian Electric on the extent of the outage and the cause.

*Check back for details, which will be posted as they become available.