Updated at 9:42 p.m., Friday, December 7, 2007
Haleakala road reopened
Advertiser Staff
The road at Haleakala National Park was reopened today, the park announced at 8 p.m. Road crews cleared rocks and debris from the road to the summit. But the park remained without power and facilities were closed. Telephones were not working.High winds and rain are expected at the summit through the weekend. Visibility was less than 20 feet.
The park headquarters visitor center was closed, but restrooms there were open. At the summit, the visitor center and restrooms were closed, as was the Hosmer Grove Campground.
The winds estimated at 120 mph or more damaged at least two buildings at the Haleakala Observatories at the summit.
A small unoccupied building lost its roof, and the doors to a storage building were blown off, said Jeff Kuhn, associate director for Maui for the University of Hawai'i's Institute for Astronomy.
He said poor weather and a power outage has not allowed officials to check for additional damage.
"This is the biggest storm I've ever seen, and I've been here 10 years," Kuhn said.
