Power generator issues trigger hourslong screening delays at Lihue Airport

LĪHUʻE (HawaiiNewsNow) - Intermittent power outages at Līhuʻe Airport triggered major Transportation Security Administration screening delays Wednesday, with some passengers waiting in line for seven hours.

Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation Director Ed Sniffen said Hurricane Lowell cut power to the airport and damaged one of the facility’s two backup generators.

“They had their generators going, and they would turn off every so often and then they’d have to reboot, I think, it was the X-ray system to look at the luggage,” said Karie Haynes, who had traveled to Kauai to watch her family take part on the Kauai Marathon and Half-Marathon, which were canceled because of the hurricane.

To minimize the load on the single generator, officials said the airport reduced security screening to one line, resulting in extended screening times.

“We were in the TSA pre-check line at 8:30,” said Haynes. “Our flight was originally for 11:30 and it did get pushed back to 12:30 -- and we missed it.”

“I had a rental car and we couldn’t get gas. All the gas stations are backed up for blocks,” said Ewa Beach resident Greg Robinson. “We got out to the airport at, I believe, 10:30. And we were there for about four hours just trying to get through TSA.”

Sniffen said high electrical demand caused the remaining generator to power on and off, and each outage forces TSA personnel to restart and reset screening machines from scratch, creating compounding bottlenecks at checkpoints.

“Whatever power source for the one scanner would go down pretty much every 15 minutes, and then it would take about 10-15 minutes to boot back up and go through their protocol, and then we would move again for about 10, 15 minutes and then it would go back down,” said Kauai resident Madison Perry, who was flying to Oahu.

“They’re handing out water and from what I experienced in the four and a half hours of standing in line, everybody was very even-tempered, very understanding,” Perry said.

The department said airlines spaced out flights to allow passengers more time to get through security. A Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson told HNN that it held several departures to wait for passengers, but the baggage claim in Honolulu had dozens of checked bags still waiting for their passengers to arrive from Lihue.

Power was restored to the airport by 5 p.m.

As of 7:30 p.m., officials said two additional security screening lines opened at the airport for a total of three.