HONOLULU - After the shake from Hawaii's earthquake subsided, the power went out.

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Elevators, fans and lights shut off, and hotel guests were evacuated, with some making a beeline to stores for nonperishable provisions.

But as the day continued, and the smell of propane-powered barbecues began to fill island neighborhoods, the threat of statewide panic seemed to fade.

Despite a lack of traffic signals, the roads were calm, with drivers cautiously crossing intersections and police stationed at the busier spots.

Visitors and residents milled around the streets of Waikiki despite gloomy skies and intermittent showers. And a Waikiki Beach surf contest went on as planned once it was clear there was no tsunami threat.

Not knowing how long the power would be out, Jim Cosby of Ashburn, Va., was on the street Sunday morning in Waikiki waiting in line at a convenience market to get water and food.

The power outage was followed by an announcement on Cosby's hotel public address system explaining what had happened and urging guests to remain calm, he said.

"Which is kind of hard to do when there's no electricity," he noted.

Lines ran to the street outside the Times supermarket in Kaimuki through the morning, and flashlights and candles sold out within three hours, said store director Gayle Kim. But by late afternoon, a relatively short line of shoppers was quickly able to scoot inside once a store worker opened the automatic doors.

"We're not really panicking or anything," said Iri Park, who along with Kenji Aoki exited the store with a cart full of bags.

The two were stocking up on junk food because it doesn't require any cooking, they said.

Aoki and Park said they didn't take the earthquake too seriously, especially Aoki, who has experienced bigger temblors in his native Japan.

Throughout Oahu's blacked-out neighborhoods, few stores, gas stations or restaurants were open, but the ones that were filled up late Sunday.

Up the street from the supermarket, a normally sleepy Vietnamese restaurant was packed.

Without any TV, computer or other modern forms of entertainment, Brian Correa said he and his family have been spending their time "talking story" and decided to dine out just for fun.

"We have stuff at home," Correa said. "We just wanted to get out of the house."