Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Why are these outages happening so often?
Answer: The infrastructure is aging, but ultimately corrosion and weathering effects from island conditions caused one of the two transformers within the Menoher substation to fail, which has led to our current situation relying solely on the second transformer to carry the entire load. 

Our priority is to maintain power for the residential areas and the barracks through a series of mitigation steps. We are pursuing every energy saving efficiency available to bring the load demand down especially during peak hours (4-10:30 p.m.). These efforts include identifying additional military facilities to take offline or place on generator power, extensive planning of rerouting individual circuits to other substations, employing military power generation assets and monitoring the electrical load hourly each night to adjust mitigation efforts. 

Additionally we ask residents to take some steps to minimize their energy consumption during peak hours, such as:  

  • Avoid using multiple major appliances at the same time (dryers, stoves, ovens) during the peak hours of 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
  • Charge electric vehicles prior to 4 p.m. or after 10:30 p.m. 
  • Avoid the use of non-essential electrical appliances or lights
  • If the power does go out, unplug high voltage items until after the power is restored (this will expedite the time it takes for the power to be restored) 
     

Question: What is being done about the aging electrical infrastructure, and what is the timing? 
Answer: A new transformer is being built and then delivered to Hawaii, however, it takes months to build these pieces of equipment. An additional transformer has been located for reconfiguration to meet the Menoher specifications with installation projected to be complete by the end of October 2022. Hawaiian Electric and the U.S. Army are partnered, and have a 5-year capital improvement plan to address upgrades in the future. During this transition period, the Army leadership is clear about the standard that must be maintained throughout—reliable power to essential locations: Soldiers’ barracks, Army family homes, and child care facilities. 

Question: What is Alpha 249th Prime Power providing to the electrical system?
Answer: Soldiers from the 249th Power Battalion (Prime Power) quickly arrived on Aug. 6 to begin setting up and coordinating efforts with the Directorate of Public Works and Hawaiian Electric to establish power generation and distribution assistance. Since Aug. 11, Prime Power has been providing power generation to a portion of the grid to help reduce the load on the substation during peak hours. 

Prime power specialists are trained to deploy, install, operate, and maintain the Army's Prime Power Program, power generation and distribution assets in support of theater commanders.
 

Question: Why does a new transformer take so long to be built? Is there a backup transformer in case the one new one fails?
Answer: In the electric industry, substation-class transformers are typically custom designed and built to meet the needs of the overall grid where they are intended to be installed. While this replacement is built, we have identified an additional transformer and are working with our power partners at Hawaiian Electric for reconfiguration and installation at the Menoher substation. The installation of the reconfigured transformer is projected to be complete by the end of October 2022.
 

Question: We saw a news report about the Schofield Power Generating Station on Schofield Barracks that is powered by cooking oil and can power area military bases and the off post community. Why can’t the Power Generating Station be turned on to the benefit of the Army families?
Answer: Hawaiian Electric and the U.S. Army collaborated together to build the 50MW power generating station located on Schofield Barracks to serve as a backup power generation station during a catastrophic event. However, the issue with the Menoher substation involves power distribution, rather than power generation. The Menoher substation is receiving plenty of power, but with the failed transformer, it can only distribute through one transformer rather than two required.
 

Question: Can we PCS early or request an early return of dependents to the mainland?
Answer: There is an existing process to request an early PCS or early return of dependents. It has not been affected by these power outages. Requests will be considered by the chain of command on a case-by-case basis.
 

Question: Can dining facilities be opened to families?
Answer: Dining facilities are already open to Soldiers and their dependents, but there is no change to the regular pricing for each status/category. Dining facilities in Hawaii take turns being open for dinner and all weekend meals. A schedule and location information is available on the garrison’s website or Digital Garrison, the garrison’s mobile app.
 

Question: How can Army families contribute or make a difference in the situation? Are there any conservation measures residents can take to help matters until the system is updated?
Answer: We recognize the community has endured hardships as a result of these power outages, but we need your help to reduce the likelihood of future outages. Some ways that you can help: 

  • Avoid using multiple major appliances at the same time (dryers, stoves, ovens) during the peak hours of 4:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
  • Charge electric vehicles prior to 4:00 p.m. or after 10:30 p.m. 
  • Avoid the use of non-essential electrical appliances or lights
  • If the power does go out, unplug high voltage items until after the power is restored (this will expedite the time it takes for the power to be restored) 

To help reduce the burden on the community, the command has taken the following immediate actions to reduce the overall power requirements: 

  • Removed or reduced non-essential military facilities from the power grid
  • Rapidly employing civilian-contracted and military power generation capacity to help offset the power requirements 
  • Coordinating with HECO to transition portions of Menoher grid to an alternate transformer