More than 180,000 electricity customers across the US state of Hawaii were left without power after Tropical Storm Lala passed near the Big Island, causing widespread outages, flooding and damage.

According to outage tracking data, 183,123 electricity customers across Hawaii were without power as of Sunday afternoon local time. On Oahu, the state’s most populated island, outages that had exceeded 220,000 earlier in the day fell to around 130,000 as restoration efforts continued.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green said authorities had received reports of damage to at least 100 homes following the storm, while emergency teams continued assessing the impact across affected areas.

Lala weakens from hurricane strength

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported that Lala had weakened into a tropical storm after passing near Hawaii. The system was moving west-southwest toward Kauai County at around 31 kilometers per hour, with maximum sustained winds of approximately 105 kilometers per hour.

Although the storm’s wind speed remained below the hurricane threshold of 117 kilometers per hour, authorities continued monitoring its effects, particularly heavy rainfall, flooding and strong winds.

A tropical storm warning remained in effect for Kauai County, while earlier warnings for Maui and Oahu were lifted as conditions improved. Forecasts indicated that Lala was expected to move away from the Hawaiian Islands by Monday morning if it maintained its current path.

Flooding and infrastructure damage reported

Hawaiian Electric warned residents that restoration work could be challenging because strong winds had knocked down trees and heavy rainfall had flooded roads in several areas.

State officials reported unusually severe flash flooding in some locations. At least one person was killed in a vehicle-related incident linked to the storm.

Images released by the Hawaii Department of Transportation showed roads covered by floodwaters, while the National Weather Service reported that two homes had been swept away by rising waters.

Around 117 people had been moved to emergency shelters as of Sunday morning as authorities continued providing assistance to residents affected by the storm.

Airports reopen as recovery efforts continue

Hawaii’s Department of Transportation announced that all airports across the state had resumed operations after temporary disruptions.

Officials urged travelers to check with airlines before heading to airports, as weather-related delays and operational changes could continue while recovery efforts remain underway.

The storm comes as Hawaii continues to face increasing risks from extreme weather events, including stronger storms, flooding and infrastructure challenges linked to changing climate conditions.(ILKHA)