Power restored to East Oahu and downtown, Chinatown

3:35 p.m.

Power has been restored to all downtown and Chinatown customers as of 2:10 p.m., according to Hawaiian Electric.

All lanes near the intersection of Richards and S. King streets have also been reopened.

Power has been restored to Hahaione Elementary, Kamiloiki Elementary, Koko Head Elementary, Niu Valley Middle and Kaiser High, the state Department of Education said in a release.

All affected schools are scheduled to reopen tomorrow.

Hawaiian Electric offered additional information on the outage, saying crews repaired damaged equipment on two of the circuits that cross the Koolau mountains. Inspectors believe three main structures were damaged by albizia trees that fell across electrical lines.

1:45 p.m.

Power has been restored to all remaining customers in East Oahu, according to Hawaiian Electric.

However, crews are still working to restore power to downtown customers.

11:50 a.m.

Hawaiian Electric said crews will need to make repairs to three broken utility pole crossbeams in a mountainous area before power can be restored to over 11,000 customers in East Oahu today.

The updated estimate for restoration of power to East Oahu customers is “before dark.”

9:30 a.m.

Hawaiian Electric shared on Twitter that crews have restored power to about 1,500 customers in the Portlock area.

Crews, however, will need to repair broken equipment that is inaccessible by truck before safely restoring power to remaining customers in East Oahu. The estimated restore time is still 2 p.m.

For downtown Honolulu and Chinatown customers, meanwhile, crews continue to ‘make good progress with repairs,” Hawaiian electric said. Lanes remain closed at the intersection of Richards and S. King streets.

Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation said the power outage in Hawaii Kai affects several locations and has resulted in the closure of bathrooms at Sandy Beach Park. There is no connectivity at Koko Head shooting complex and district park, Hanauma Bay, and Kamili Iki Neighborhood Park.

Kaiser Permanente said on Twitter that its Hawaii Kai clinic will be closed today due to the power outage, and that physicians, providers and staff will be redeployed to the Honolulu Medical Office. Affected members will be contacted for appointment options.

10a East Oahu/Windward update: Crews are removing vegetation before making repairs to broken equipment in the Koolau mountains. The area is inaccessible by truck and crews will be flown in by helicopter. Estimated restore time is 2p. Mahalo for your patience. #OahuOutage pic.twitter.com/decq5BG038

— Hawaiian Electric (@HwnElectric) March 1, 2022

7:30 a.m.

Five East Oahu schools have been closed today due to the ongoing power outages.

Hahaione Elementary, Kamiloiki Elementary, Koko Head Elementary, Niu Valley Middle and Kaiser High will be closed, according to the state Department of Education. Families are being notified, a spokesperson said.

7 a.m.

Hawaiian Electric Co. updated the estimated restore time for East Oahu customers to 2 p.m.

In downtown, lanes remain closed at the intersection of Richards and S. King streets while crews make repairs.

6:30 a.m.

Hawaiian Electric Co. said this morning that around 13,000 customers were without power in East Oahu including the Hawaii Kai and Kaneohe areas.

Repair crews found broken equipment in a remote area inaccessible by truck that needs to be repaired before power can be restored.

The estimated time for restoration is 1 p.m., HECO said.

Meanwhile, work continues on the outage in downtown Honolulu and Chinatown. The estimated restoration time for that outage is 12:30 p.m.

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Hawaiian Electric Co. reports that crews are working to restore power to customers in downtown Honolulu following a fire in a manhole at the intersection of South King and Richards streets that started about 5 p.m.

The outage affected nearly 900 customers and shut down traffic lights in rush-hour traffic.

“Repairs to the downtown underground network are complex; crews must first pump water from manholes before they can safely work on the underground cables,” HECO said in a news release. “Work will continue overnight and repairs are expected to be completed tomorrow.”

The release said the cause of the fire is under investigation.