Kauai residents began cleaning up and assessing damage Tuesday after Hurricane Lowell battered the Garden Isle overnight, knocking out power to about 90% of the island’s electricity customers, wrecking homes and roads, and prompting emergency rescues during the height of the storm.

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Lowell’s heavy rain, powerful winds — which gusted to 84 mph at Lihue Airport — and massive storm surge swept the island Monday night into Tuesday morning. The Category 2 hurricane’s fury pushed homes off their foundations on Kauai’s south shore, knocked down trees and utility poles, and scattered debris over roads across the island.

Kauai Fire Department Chief Michael Gibson said firefighters responded to numerous calls involving people who were trapped, unaccounted for or in need of medical assistance.

One KFD crew’s truck was struck and pinned by a falling tree on a highway, forcing firefighters to evacuate to safety until the winds subsided, he said. Crews later resumed searches, and Gibson said all people reported missing or unaccounted for were located, most by Tuesday morning.

Firefighters and American Medical Response crews carried out multiple rescues despite the dangerous conditions, including transferring a patient between ambulances when a downed tree blocked their route.

Beth Amaro, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative spokesperson, said the company had restored power to 466 customers in the Port Allen, Eleele and Hanapepe areas, but roughly 33,000 customers remained without electricity Tuesday afternoon. Crews used helicopters, drones and ground inspections to assess the extent of the damage.

Kainalu Gayagas, 34, who lives in Koloa, said his family had prepared for the storm with food, water and generators. But after the storm, power is his biggest concern.

“We are charging phones from battery packs,” he said.

Spotty internet and cellphone service added to the challenges facing residents as they began cleaning up.

Gayagas said the storm was frightening even though his neighborhood escaped some of the worst damage.

“The winds and rain last night were gnarly,” Gayagas said. “I thought my house was gonna blow over. I thought the windows were gonna blow in.”

Gayagas spent Tuesday helping his girlfriend’s parents in Kekaha, where conditions were considerably worse.

Two sheds on the property were largely torn apart, leaving belongings inside wet and damaged. A fence separating the property from a neighbor’s home was blown over onto the neighbor’s property.

Gayagas said his girlfriend’s parents told him they could feel the house moving back and forth during the storm and could hear the roof creaking.

Nearby residents also reported damage. A family member who lives several houses away had her garage and an interior patio damaged when the roof collapsed.

Despite the destruction, Gayagas said residents were already helping one another. Local residents cleared rocks and debris from roads in Kekaha, helping restore access through the community. “There’s gonna be a lot of rebuilding,” he said, “especially for the roads.”

Gayagas, who is also a member of the Hawaii National Guard, said Guard members were assisting with recovery efforts Tuesday, although he was not activated.

‘Action so fast’

“At the height or the peak of the storm, action was so fast,” said Elton Ushio, Kauai Emergency Management Agency administrator. “Our situational awareness, common operating pictures board … lit up like a Christmas tree with all of the different things that were going down at the same time.”

By Tuesday afternoon, the hurricane warning for Kauai and Niihau and other weather-related advisories, including a tornado watch, had been lifted, allowing recovery crews to begin assessing damage across the island.

Search-and-rescue operations had been completed, Ushio said, and the focus had shifted to damage assessments and restoring critical infrastructure.

Roads are considered a priority because they serve as lifelines for communities and are needed for recovery work. Officials urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel because road closures, debris and delays remained widespread.

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Ushio said the county had received about 10 residential damage reports and a smaller number of business reports through its online reporting portal Tuesday, but cautioned that the figures did not represent the full extent of the damage.

It was too early to estimate the total cost of damage from Lowell, he said, as the county continued preliminary assessments of homes, businesses and infrastructure across Kauai.

The state Department of Transportation reported limited damage to Kauai’s major transportation facilities.

At Lihue Airport, the only reported damage was to structures in the base yard away from the passenger terminal, with no impact on operations.

At Nawiliwili Harbor, security fencing was damaged but repaired Tuesday, while debris accumulated in the terminal area. Matson and Young Brothers were working to clear the debris, and the public was expected to have access to the terminal by Thursday, DOT officials said. Port Allen sustained damage to a shed roof.

Kauai County plans to send crews into communities to conduct on-the-ground assessments, which eventually would feed into state and federal evaluations that could determine whether Kauai qualifies for additional disaster assistance.

Ushio said the Robinson ohana, owners of Niihau, reported no injuries on the island, which was closest to Lowell’s center as it passed a few dozen miles to the west late Monday night. The Robinsons said the island did not need the county’s assistance.

Hawaii public schools in Kauai County will remain closed to students through Friday as officials assess storm damage and prepare campuses for reopening.

Preliminary damage has been reported at Kauai High School and Kekaha Elementary School. Widespread power outages and limited access to some campuses have prevented the state Department of Education from completing formal assessments.

Officials are preparing for students to return Monday pending completion of campus inspections.

State and county nonessential offices will also remain closed through Friday on Kauai.

Officials urged residents to exercise caution around floodwaters and storm runoff. The state Department of Health issued a brown water advisory for the island.

Ushio also cautioned residents using power generators to keep them outdoors and ventilated because exhaust can cause deadly carbon monoxide poisoning.

Lowell’s impact extended beyond Kauai. On Oahu, Honolulu police are investigating the death of an unidentified man found unresponsive beneath a large tree trunk Monday night in Waimanalo.

Officers responded at about 8:35 p.m. after receiving a report from an anonymous caller. Police classified the investigation as an unattended death and said no foul play was suspected. The death’s connection to Lowell had not been established Tuesday, officials said, although Gov. Josh Green told CNN that it was storm-related.

Ala Moana Regional Park also remained closed today as city crews work to remove sand and debris pushed into the park by the storm. In some areas, more than an inch of sand covered roadways, sidewalks and other portions of the park. Crews were also working to reopen a stretch of Farrington Highway in Makaha that was overrun by storm surge leaving sand and debris.

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said city offices that were closed Tuesday as a precaution would reopen today.

On Maui, Lahaina resident Roland Tanner said unusually high surf sent boats near the Mala Boat Ramp crashing into shore. By Tuesday morning, debris had accumulated along the shoreline from the Mala Boat Ramp toward Baby Beach.

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