08-19-2014, 06:52 AM
I called Hawaiian Telcom yesterday, and they gave Paradise Park an Aug 30th commitment to have their landlines back up and running. I didn't understand much of what they told me, although I asked many questions, and even spoke with a supervisor. I ended up with the impression they did not want to say what is really going on:
When the power went down, their phone center back up generators switched on automatically. This is why many of us had working landlines throughout the storm and into Friday. Then the generators ran out of gas on Friday, and phone service has been down since. I asked if the problem was that HELCO had not yet provided power to these phone centers (there are many on the island that route calls) and was told, no. It also did not seem that downed lines were a large part of the problem. They had to replace parts and they have not been able to do that yet. I asked "what parts?" but they couldn't say. I suggested parts could be put on a plane and arrive in Hilo from the mainland in less thatn a day. They agreed with me on that. But still... apparently... no parts.
When the power went down, their phone center back up generators switched on automatically. This is why many of us had working landlines throughout the storm and into Friday. Then the generators ran out of gas on Friday, and phone service has been down since. I asked if the problem was that HELCO had not yet provided power to these phone centers (there are many on the island that route calls) and was told, no. It also did not seem that downed lines were a large part of the problem. They had to replace parts and they have not been able to do that yet. I asked "what parts?" but they couldn't say. I suggested parts could be put on a plane and arrive in Hilo from the mainland in less thatn a day. They agreed with me on that. But still... apparently... no parts.
"I'm at that stage in life where I stay out of discussions. Even if you say 1+1=5, you're right - have fun." - Keanu Reeves