Severe weather causes power outage affecting several schools, Hana Airport
HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Severe weather over the weekend is still causing problems for some parts of the state, triggering power outages that are affecting schools and an airport.
On Maui, the state Department of Transportation said power is temporarily out at Hana Airport. The outage, however, is not affecting daytime operations.
The power outage also prompted school officials to close Hana High and Elementary School on Monday.
According to Maui Electric, a large tree fell and pinned down part of a power line.
Officials said power is expected to be restored by Monday afternoon.
And on the Big Island, Laupahoehoe Community Public Charter School is closed because of the severe weather. So far, no school closures have been reported on Oahu or Kauai.
Drenching rains and strong winds also caused problems on roads in East Maui.
Rocks, branches and other debris covered Haneoo Road over the weekend. Officials said high tide and stormy surf brought large waves and debris onto the roadway.
The county also shut down Piilani Highway near Kipahulu on Sunday.
The National Weather service extended the flash flood watch until Monday at 6 p.m. The atmosphere around the islands remains unstable as instability continues to pour rain across the islands.
Forecasters say the severe weather is thanks to an upper level trough moving toward the state from the west along with enhanced moisture from strong tradewinds.
On Friday, the rains and strong winds were keeping first responders busy.
There were reports of downed trees on the Likelike and Pali highways, and crews were reported to multiple downed wires islandwide. Much of the same continued Saturday and Sunday.
The blustery conditions also pushed up the surf. On Kamehameha Highway near Kualoa Ranch, the surf pushed sand and rocks onto the highway. The mess took hours to clean up.
A winter storm warning was posted for for the summit areas of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, which got several inches of snow Friday and Saturday.
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