Big Island civil defense workers remained on alert as heavy rain fell at times in the Puna and Hilo areas, and a high surf advisory remains in effect for the east and southeast shores of the island.

The hurricane watch for the Big Island was canceled, but a flash flood watch remains in effect for all areas of the Big Island except Kona and leeward Kohala. Officials with Hawaii Electric Light Co. scrambled to repair downed power lines and removed tree branches tangled in lines, especially in the Hilo and Waimea areas.

Jay Ignacio, spokesperson for Helco, said the largest outage cut power to about 1,300 customers in the Volcano and Glenwood areas shortly before 3 a.m. The problem was caused by a downed tree limb, and power was restored in less than an hour, Ignacio said.

He said crews continued to work this morning to restore power to about 100 customers in pockets around the island.

State and county road crews were also at work removing some tree limbs and other debris that littered roadways.

Tropical Storm Jimena was located about 170 miles south of Hilo at 5 a.m. and continued to move west at 17 mph. Maximum sustained winds had dropped to about 70 mph with some higher gusts, a considerable weakening from the 100 mph winds of last night.