Travel into and out of Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii will be halted indefinitely due to cracks in the runway at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport.

It is unclear at this time how long the airport will be closed.

According to the state Transportation Department, the cracks were a previously known issue, but they have widened and worsened due to inclement weather that hit the Big Island earlier this week.

“Cracks had developed and the runway pavement degradation had accelerated due to the recent rains,” the state Transportation Department said.

Now, the runway will be closed until further notice, and as of this writing, there is no timetable for how long the repairs will take. The State is currently reviewing whether the runway will be able to reopen and operate while repairs and construction are on-going.

“[The Hawaii Department of Transportation] is measuring the usable runway length and will provide the information to airline operators to determine how to reopen the runway while restricting planes from the damaged areas,” the state Transportation Department said.

On Monday evening local time, Hawaiian Airlines canceled all remaining flights into and out of Kona Airport. Other airlines with scheduled departures were also effected.

Passengers with flights into or out of Kona’s airport are being advised to check with their airline about the status of flights for Tuesday, as well as later this week. More information is expected on Tuesday.

While Kona is the busiest airport on the Big Island, there is also an airport in Hilo, with daily flights to Honolulu. Folks looking to leave the Big Island immediately could consider flying out of Hilo Airport and making a connection in Honolulu.

This story will be updated as information becomes available.

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