Phone service has been restored to Kula, Makawao, Pulakani, Häliçimaile, Haçikü, and Päçia areas of Maui after a vehicular accident yesterday caused a fire that resulted in loss of service to thousands of Hawaiian Telcom customers.

Just before 5 p.m. yesterday, a truck crashed into a propane tank on Lower Kula Road, igniting a fire that damaged fiber optic lines used for phone service. A nearby home was also damaged. The driver of the truck, a 38-year-old woman, was transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
According to Hawaiian Telcom, phone service was limited to calls from phones within the affected areas. Because 911 service was also interrupted, Maui police staffed substations in Makawao and Päçia through the night to accept calls from within the areas.
Repair crews worked continuously until phone service was restored at 4 p.m. today.