The utility restored power in stages to various neighborhoods this afternoon. Hawai'i Kai was the last to get its electricity back, shortly after 6 p.m.

The outage affected an estimated 37,000 customers in Hawai'i Kai, Manoa, Makakilo, Waipahu, 'Ewa Beach, Waimanalo, Kahala and sections of Pearl City, said HECO spokesman Jose Dizon.

HECO cut the power to the customers shortly after 2 p.m. to compensate for the failure of three generating units, Dizon said. Power will be restored after the utility determines what caused the units to trip off line, he said.

In addition to two units at the electric company's Waiau plant, a generator at Campbell Industrial Park failed, Dizon said. The plant is operated by Kalaeloa Partners LP, a private power provider.