Hawaii residents and restaurants are being told to throw out large amounts of food after storm outages, a costly hit for small businesses and families already dealing with the damage.

• Refrigerated food goes bad after four hours without power, and anything perishable that warmed up should go in the trash.
• Frozen food lasts about a day in a half-full freezer and two days in a full one — refreezing thawed food does not make it safe again.
• Restaurants are dumping ice cream, desserts, and whole inventories, and the replacement cost hits small independent operators hardest.
• Hawaiian Electric generally does not pay claims for spoiled food after storms like this one.

Outlook: Expect restocking costs and possible short-term supply gaps at local restaurants and grocery stores as the state recovers.