Strong cold front batters Oahu, knocking out power to thousands and closing schools

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - A strong cold front moved over Oahu early Wednesday, knocking out power to tens of thousands of customers and snarling the morning commute.

Power outages forced seven schools to close their doors for the day.

At one point, Hawaiian Electric reported more than 25,000 customers on Oahu were without power.

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Crews were expected to work through the day to restore electricity to all communities.

The outages were also impacting traffic lights on some of Oahu’s key thoroughfares, slowing morning traffic.

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Officials said many of the overnight outages were caused by falling or blowing tree limbs hitting power lines.

Drivers were advised to remain vigilant and drive carefully on the slick roads.

DOE: 7 public schools on Oahu closed due to power outages

The severe weather was blamed on a cold front that brought heavy rains and damaging southerly winds.

A flood watch remains in effect for Hawaii County, but alerts have been dropped for other parts of the state.

HNN marked Wednesday as a First Alert Weather Day, and that alert has also since been canceled.

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This story will be updated.

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