Punahele Street Closed by Fallen Tree Branch Monday Night

A large fallen tree branch blocked Punahele Street in Hilo for several hours Monday night.

The albizia tree branch fell onto a Hawaiian Telcom line just below Hawaii Community Correctional Center at about 6:40 p.m., Noelani Whittington, spokeswoman for the county Department of Public Works, told Big Island Now this morning.

A bamboo tree and other debris remained hanging from the telephone line this morning. Photo by Dave Smith.

The department’s highway maintenance workers were called out to clear the street which was closed from Haili Street to Komohana Street. The branch measured approximately eight inches in diameter.

The street was reopened at about 9 p.m., according to a bulletin issued by police.

Hawaiian Telcom officials could not immediately be reached this morning to determine whether the incident caused any interruptions to telephone service.