By Shariq Khan and Michelle Conlin
Aug 16 (Reuters) – More than 180,000 utility customers remained without power across Hawaii on Sunday afternoon after Hurricane Lala brushed the Big Island before being downgraded to a tropical storm.
Some 183,123 customers across Hawaii were without power as of 3:30 p.m. HST (0130 GMT), according to poweroutage.us.Outages in Oahu, the most populated island, had dropped from more than 220,000 to about 130,000 as of Sunday morning, state officials said during a press conference.
State officials received reports of at least 100 homes damaged, Hawaii Governor Josh Green said on Sunday.
At 2 p.m. HST (0000 GMT) Lala was moving west toward southwest Kauai County at about 20 mph (31 kph) with maximum sustained winds near 65 mph, just below the hurricane threshold of 73 mph, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. A tropical storm warning remained in effect for Kauai county, although those warnings for Maui and Oahu counties were discontinued earlier on Sunday, according to the hurricane center.
The weather agency’s projections indicate that if the storm remains on its expected path, it should be clear of Hawaii’s islands by 8 a.m. HST (1800 GMT) Monday.
Hawaiian Electric had warned customers on Saturday evening that repair efforts were being hampered as hurricane-force winds toppled trees and rain flooded roadways.
Lala had battered parts of Hawaii with flash floods “like we’ve never seen,” a state official said.
State officials also urged residents to stay indoors after at least one person was reported dead in a car-related accident.
“It’s not a day to go to the beach,” one official said during a press conference on Sunday morning.
Video released by the Hawaii Department of Transportation showed flood waters overtaking roads. Two homes were swept away, according to the National Weather Service.
About 117 people were in shelters as of Sunday morning, officials said.
The Hawaii Department of Transportation said that all airports have been reopened, but state officials advised travelers to check with their airlines for updates.
(Reporting by Shariq Khan and Michelle Conlin in New York; Editing by Sergio Non, Chizu Nomiyama, Mark Porter and Kate Mayberry)
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