After a slow and chaotic response to the earthquake two years ago that left 5,000 passengers in the dark at Honolulu Airport, state officials reacted much faster to Friday night's islandwide blackout that resulted in some delays for holiday travelers.

Delays & Frustration At Honolulu Airport

 

Dozens of passengers slept at the airport and are still trying to catch a flight back home.

 

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  “;In '06, it was awful, a very weak response,”; said Gov. Linda Lingle, referring to airport operations after the 15-second earthquake and powerful aftershock that struck the Big Island in October 2006. “;Since that time, the airport (has) put in a lot of emergency generation capacity. ... The people there have been through that before once and I think they showed the great improvement that occurred there.”;

At one point Friday night, there were about 600 passengers waiting in lines at the airport, according to state Transportation Director Brennon Morioka. The X-ray machines were down, prompting Transportation Security Administration agents to screen each person manually. The bathrooms were closed temporarily because the toilets couldn't flush.

Some flights were postponed to yesterday morning, forcing passengers to either return home or to their hotels and many to simply sleep over at the airport.

“;It was horrible,”; said Stacy Lorenzo, 42, of Makakilo, whose 10:30 p.m. United flight to Los Angeles was postponed. “;There were people everywhere. It was just a mess.”;

Randy Dee, a Marine based in Okinawa, arrived in Honolulu Friday for a daylong stopover before returning to Okinawa. He had a room reserved at the Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki but didn't want to endure the hassle of trying to rent a car. He ended up paying $133 for a hotel room at the Best Western near the airport.

“;I ate a little can of Pringles and a Diet Coke,”; said Dee, 39. “;That was my dinner.”;

Bob and Debbie Yonts, of Knoxville, Tenn., returned to their daughter's home on Hickam Air Force Base after their flight was postponed.

“;We had the perfect flight and now we have a 14-hour layover in Denver,”; said Bob Yonts, 48.

Though the airport was at times chaotic Friday night and yesterday morning, state officials said airport operations during this power outage ran a lot smoother than after the 2006 earthquake.

“;The last time, we were just waiting around,”; Morioka said. “;This time, we had some electricity so we could get online fairly quickly. We weren't in the dark like we were the last time around.”;

Two years ago, the airport had no backup generators. After the 2006 earthquake, which highlighted the problems and dangers of having no backup electricity plan, the state installed five temporary generators.

When the power went out at the airport just before 7 p.m., officials called their electricians to work. It takes about 45 minutes to an hour to fire up each generator, and by 9:45 p.m., two-thirds of the airport was operational.

In the long term, the state hopes to spend several million dollars in two to three years to build a power plant in a partnership with the Hawaiian Electric Co. that would supply electricity only to the airport.

“;We would be able to bring the power online a lot quicker,”; Morioka said. “;Essentially, we would get off the electrical grid. What happens outside the airport would not impact what happens inside the airport.”;