Road crews work to clear damage along Highway 11 outside of Pahala, Hawaii, on 17 August 2026. Photograph: James D DeCamp/ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockView image in fullscreenRoad crews work to clear damage along Highway 11 outside of Pahala, Hawaii, on 17 August 2026. Photograph: James D DeCamp/ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockHawaii crews work to restore power to thousands after Lala outagesStorm also caused destructive flooding and damage to homes and infrastructure with one woman dead
Tropical storm Lala wreaks ‘devastation’ to some areas of Hawaii’s Big Island
Crews in Hawaii are working to restore power to thousands of residents after the outer bands of Hurricane Lala battered the islands over the weekend, causing destructive flooding and killing one person.
On the hard-hit Big Island, crews were working to clear and restore roads, but some communities on the southern end of the island remained isolated as they were cut off from communication.
Hawaiian Electric said inspections are showing significant damage across the island group, especially in remote areas. Crews were working overnight to restore power to thousands across the Big Island, Maui and Oahu.
Most public schools reopened but Hawaii county’s non-emergency operations were still suspended, officials said.
Officials said the storm caused one death – a 90-year-old woman who had been reported missing in Naalehu and then found dead on Monday.
Lala blew past the Hawaiian islands on Saturday. The hurricane had weakened to a tropical storm, but still brought significant damage to homes, roads and bridges.
The Hawaii governor, Josh Green, said Monday that the damage was not as catastrophic as feared and that recovery will be “somewhat brisk”.
The storm has since moved west, according to the National Weather Service. It is expected to eventually turn north toward the Papahānaumokuākea Marine national monument, a massive and remote federally protected area of the Pacific with islands, atolls, sea mounts, shoals and coral reefs.
