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Hawaiian Electric battles wildfire outages and lawsuits
Hawaiian Electric is fighting outages and lawsuits caused by the wildfire that engulfed the Hawaiian island of Maui.
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Hawaii, Maui: Hawaiian Electric is fighting outages and lawsuits caused by the wildfire that engulfed the Hawaiian island of Maui.
Hawaiian Electric, the utility serving most of the wildfire-struck island of Maui, is battling to restore power as it faces questions about its part in the fires that hit Lahaina and other areas.
Since the fires hit, several groups have sued the utility claiming that it may have been able to prevent the blazes had they instituted a public safety power shut-off before high winds hit the islands.
Hawaii Electric’s CEO Shelee Kimura said that the utility did not have a shut-off plan, also telling that power outages cause problems of their own, including a hampered public health response during a disaster that has taken some 100 lives.
Workers with Hawaiian Electric are working to restore more customers in parts of West Maui and Upcountry. Hawaiian Electric serves about 74,000 customers on Maui. Power has been restored to about 80 % of the customers who have been without electricity since the wildfire.
In West Maui, crews are repairing two of the three main transmission lines serving the area and are making progress on restoring service to more customers. Hawaiian Electric deployed a mobile substation unit at its Lahainaluna substation to help restore power to the area and its homes, schools, and water facilities. In Upcountry, all transmission lines have been restored and crews are continuing to repair neighbourhood circuits and individual service lines.
About 2,000 structures were destroyed by the flames, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and damage estimates are at about $5.5 B.
The officials are still investigating the causes of the fires. Hawaii Electric Vice President Jim Kelly told CNN that his utility is cooperating with fire investigators. Power shut-offs, Kelly said, are handled on a case-by-case basis and managed alongside first responders.
According to Moody’s, rulings of negligence against the utility are not out of the question as investigations into the causes of the fires move forward.
Hawaiian Electric operates in Maui as Maui Electric. Hawaiian Electric provides electricity for 95 % of residents of the State of Hawaii on Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, and Hawaii Island.
Source: T&D World