It bored more than 600 feet under the Ala Wai Canal and Kai'olu Street when it hit the obstruction. Workers had to excavate a portion of the street fronting the Hawaiian Electric substation to clear it. Some on-street parking was closed.

The microtunneling machine should reach the makai pit at the corner of Kuhio Avenue and Kai'olu Street early next week, according to the city.

On Feb. 9 the microtunneling machine began pushing 20-foot lengths of steel casing pipes from a large pit on the mauka side of the Ala Wai Canal. The run from the mauka pit to the makai one is 1,220 feet.

The work is all part of the Beachwalk Wastewater Emergency Bypass project. The project was launched last May following a major break in an aging sewer line under Kai'olu Street.

Visit www.beachwalkbypass.com for weekly updates. For more information call 543-8374.