Hurricane Lala leaves Hawaii Island communities in lengthy recovery

Los Angeles, Aug 20 (IANS) About 17,000 customers on Hawaii Island remain without power, while residents in parts of the southern Kau district are still struggling with roads covered by mud, boulders and fallen trees days after Hurricane Lala battered the island state of the United States in the Pacific Ocean.

Hawaiian Electric said in an update that its crews made strong overnight progress repairing damaged infrastructure and restoring power to 99 per cent of affected customers on Oahu, 98 per cent on Maui, and 75 per cent on Hawaii Island.

The company expects to complete repairs on Wednesday on the majority of remaining customers without power on Oahu and Maui, reports Xinhua news agency.

Hawaiian Electric added that repairs in some heavily damaged areas could take at least two weeks.

In Kau, several feet of mud, fallen trees and debris remain on roads and bridges Wednesday, Big Island Now reported. Contractors are using excavators, loaders and dump trucks to remove mud, boulders and branches, while access remains difficult in some areas.

A section of Mamalahoa Highway in Pahala was washed out during the storm, leaving part of the roadway gone, according to the Hawaii Department of Transportation.

Naalehu was isolated when sections of the highway were blocked, although the department said on Tuesday that no communities on Hawaii Island remained isolated.

Hawaii County said the storm produced a record number of reported power outages and road closures across the island. Fire crews and the Hawaii National Guard conducted search-and-rescue operations Sunday in Naalehu, Waiohinu and Pahala, checking neighbourhoods heavily affected by flooding.

Hawaii police said one death appeared related to Lala and another may have been storm-related.

Lala strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday before weakening into a tropical storm as it passed south of Hawaii Island, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center.

Recovery work continued as another potential tropical system developed southeast of Hawaii, with forecasters saying its future track remains uncertain.

–IANS

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