NEWS RELEASES
For Immediate Release
August 15, 2026
Oʻahu Residents Asked to Reduce Water Use
HONOLULU – The Board of Water Supply (BWS) is asking all residents to begin reducing their water use before severe weather arrives. A tropical storm watch remains in effect for Oʻahu. Lala has strengthened to a Category 1 and residents should continue to limit water use until BWS lifts the request for water conservation.
“In addition to making sure your emergency kit has enough water for up to 14 days, it’s important to limit water use to essential needs – drinking, eating, and hygiene,” said Ernest Lau, BWS Manager and Chief Engineer. “This is an island-wide call to help us keep our reservoirs as full as possible and to keep water service going as much as possible during and after the storm. We need everyone’s kōkua in this effort.”
Storm damage and power outages, even intermittent, can impact water service across the island. These impacts can hinder BWS’s ability to pump water from wells and other water sources throughout the water system. BWS has generators positioned around the island to help prevent water outages as much as possible. If water cannot be pumped to a reservoir tank, the water remaining in the tank will be all that is available until electrical power is restored or made available through other means. Water conservation is needed during significant storm events and electrical outages until storm warnings have officially been canceled, electrical power is restored and water levels in reservoir tanks have return to normal.
Residents should stay tuned to news reports and sign up to receive email, text message or push notification alerts from BWS and other emergency response agencies through the City and County of Honolulu’s HNLAlert service. Sign up at hnlalert.gov.
About the Board of Water Supply
The Board of Water Supply (BWS), a semi-autonomous agency of the City and County of Honolulu, manages Oʻahu’s municipal water resources and distribution system. As the largest water utility in the State, the BWS serves approximately one million customers on Oʻahu. The BWS embraces its mission of “Water for Life – Ka Wai Ola” – to provide a safe, dependable, and affordable water supply, now and into the future. Uwē ka lani, ola ka honua – “When the heavens weep, the earth lives.” For more information, visit www.boardofwatersupply.com, follow @BWSHonolulu or like the BWS’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/BWSHonolulu.
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Contact:
Kathleen Elliott-Pahinui
Public Information Officer
Honolulu Board of Water Supply
Phone: (808) 748-5319