West Maui Power Outages

[mountainboy]

Saw many reports of folks losing power in West Maui resorts including Westin & others...
Hope everyone is doing ok & staying safe..
Mahalo!

https://www.khon2.com/local-news/public-safety-power-shutoff-initiated-for-west-maui-with-more-than-10000-customers-impacted/

https://www.reddit.com/r/MauiVisitors/comments/1r0s77l/power_outage_kaanapali_29

MEMA Alert: County monitoring conditions during wind advisory through today 2-10-26

MEMA Alert

www.mauicounty.gov

 

[rickandcindy23]

Some are saying the outage was planned during high winds, but why then was the electric company replacing fuses on the lines along Honoapiilani Hwy. This was not planned, and Rick said the winds were bad for days before the outage. I would say that wind may have done some damage, but it wasn't planned.

 

[mountainboy]

We left on Friday, right before the storm but saw lots of pics of significant rains, winds, flooding, fallen trees all over the weekend from the storm on social media...
Then saw lots of reports of this power outage....
(We had lots of winds last Monday but the rest of the week was gorgeous until Friday evening when we left...).
Praying for everyone...

 

[slip]

Yes, most of this wasn't planned. We still had strong winds most of the day today here on Molokai (Maui County), although we haven't lost power today. I have been on the Hawaii Electric Power outage website alot o er the last few days and Maui Island has always had multiple outage areas and some were listed as power lines down.

 

[dyi27308]

I received an email weeks before my arrival at WKORV(2/5-2/14) and in the resort update link this information was posted

“Important Alerts

Guests should be aware of the following:

We understand that Maui is a special place for our Owners and guests. Following the wildfires that greatly impacted Maui in 2023, please be mindful of the community's continuing recovery journey when visiting.
The Hawaii Electric Company has implemented periodic power outages that may impact our resort as part of the Public Safety Power Shutoff(PSPS) strategy to help prevent wildfires for the foreseeable future.

Due to these potential outages, owners and guests are advised to travel with any necessary items you may need in the event of a power out-age. Please refer to the above Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) link on how to prepare. As noted, these outages could occur at any time and may last for up to one to three days. Our front desk and pre-arrival teams will provide any additional information available that will be relevant for your stay.”

The outage was approximately 24 hours, which is better then 3 days, but we still had to discard much of the items in the refrigerator. The resort was operating on emergency power,with main elevators and lights in stairwells working. Guests could go to the lobby to charge any mobile devices. We spent all day in Kihei and Paia.

 

[JIMinNC]

Some are saying the outage was planned during high winds, but why then was the electric company replacing fuses on the lines along Honoapiilani Hwy. This was not planned, and Rick said the winds were bad for days before the outage. I would say that wind may have done some damage, but it wasn't planned.

We were on Maui for a week just prior to the power outage. We left on Saturday Feb 7, and the winds were just starting to pick up into the 40mph range in spots. The winds hit peaks of 60-80mph on the Monday after we left. If I understand correctly what happened, the initial outage on Monday evening was unplanned, but the winds started gusting over 60mph, so HECO decided to not bring the power back, and actually cut power to a wider area as a precaution, until the winds subsided to what they considered a safe level. It came back on Tuesday evening.

 

[rickandcindy23]

We were on Maui for a week just prior to the power outage. We left on Saturday Feb 7, and the winds were just starting to pick up into the 40mph range in spots. The winds hit peaks of 60-80mph on the Monday after we left. If I understand correctly what happened, the initial outage on Monday evening was unplanned, but the winds started gusting over 60mph, so HECO decided to not bring the power back, and actually cut power to a wider area as a precaution, until the winds subsided to what they considered a safe level. It came back on Tuesday evening.

This is my understanding. If we get another one, it will be out for 24 hours again, according to a local here that seems to know more about it.

 

[mountainboy]

We were on Maui for a week just prior to the power outage. We left on Saturday Feb 7, and the winds were just starting to pick up into the 40mph range in spots.

Looks like we were there about the same time!
Had a meeting at the Hyatt next door from you (although stayed at KBC/Hilton) as it was 1k cheaper than the Hyatt...
We flew out Friday night redeye on AA...

If I understand correctly what happened, the initial outage on Monday evening was unplanned, but the winds started gusting over 60mph, so HECO decided to not bring the power back, and actually cut power to a wider area as a precaution, until the winds subsided to what they considered a safe level. It came back on Tuesday evening.

Yes pls; that's our understanding too...
We did have winds up to 35 mph on Monday 2/2 also & the Hyatt (& KBC etc) lost power for a minute (we were in a meeting & took an unplanned 'break' when it went dark suddenly...). Thankfully backup gen's kicked in & they restored power quickly..
Even at the 35mph winds, wasn't fun; all events were indoors (rather than outdoor BF/breaks etc for the meeting)..
Can imagine it would be unsafe at 70+ mph winds...
Makes one realize the power of Mother Nature when we are on a small tropical island in the middle of the majestic Pacific ocean (& the usual tropical/ocean storms)...
Hard for utility co to make the call as the Lahaina fires & their experience is raw for them, so better be safe than sorry...
Glad everyone is safe...
Mahalo!