Prepare for extended outages, no water: Hawaii County officials

HONOLULU (KHON2) — According to the Hawaii County Department of Water Supply, customers should prepare for extended power outages which will affect water availability in the near future.

The power outages may come as a result of HECOʻs Wildfire Safety Strategy which states, “If a fault or disturbance is detected on a circuit, power lines in risk areas shut off automatically until crews visually confirm that it is safe to restore power. This may result in longer outages in some areas, including outages that last overnight”

The Department of Water Supply (DWS) requires dependable electricity to move approximately 25 million gallons of water each day to over 45,000 “homes, businesses, farms, and community facilities throughout much of Hawaii island.”

The DWS uses backup generators at key locations to maintain a limited amount of water service during power outages, but an extended outage may keep customers without water for a longer period of time. In this scenario, DWS wants its customers to use their water for essential purposes: Drinking, cooking and hygiene. Uses that do not count as essential until power is restored include car washing and irrigation, according to DWS.

DWS customers are advised to review their personal water situations and plan accoridngly for potential outages.