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Hawaiian Electric Broadens Wildfire Safety Efforts Statewide
8 Aug
Summary
- Hawaiian Electric plans to extend wildfire safety improvements to medium-risk areas
- Utility has replaced over 3,000 wood poles and upgraded power lines since 2024
- Company recovering financially after $4 billion settlement for 2023 Lahaina fire
In the two years since the devastating Lahaina wildfire that killed 102 people in August 2023, Hawaiian Electric has been working to bolster its systems against the growing threat of severe weather events. The utility has now announced plans to extend its wildfire safety improvements to medium-risk areas across the islands of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, and Hawaii.
Since the beginning of 2024, Hawaiian Electric has already replaced or upgraded 3,055 wood utility poles, replaced 36 miles of overhead copper power lines with stronger aluminum, and installed 101 weather stations and 135 AI-assisted video cameras in high-risk regions. The company has also implemented a public safety power shutoff program to temporarily cut electricity if conditions reach certain thresholds.
As Hawaiian Electric continues to recover from the financial impact of the Lahaina disaster, which led to a $4 billion settlement, the utility's president and CEO, Scott Seu, says the company is now in a stronger position than it has been in the past two years. In the second quarter of 2025, HEI, Hawaiian Electric's parent company, reported a $26 million profit, a significant improvement from the nearly $1.3 billion loss it incurred in the same period last year.
With the expansion of its wildfire safety efforts, Hawaiian Electric aims to further bolster the resilience of its systems and better protect communities across the Hawaiian islands.
