Hurricane Lala lashes Hawaii with strong winds and torrential rain
51 minutes ago
Strong winds and torrential rain are lashing Hawaii after category one Hurricane Lala skirted Big Island on Saturday
Hawaii Governor Josh Green said Lala got “closest to [Big Island’s] South Point area”, where a person died in weather-related a car accident
Lala gained hurricane strength on Saturday after generating80mph (130km/h) wind speeds, which have since peaked at 91mph.It could dump up to 25in (63cm) of rain and produce a 3ft storm surge
Tens off thousands have been left without power and officials have warned people to prepare for “life-threatening” conditions, including floods and mudslides
The storm is forecast to continue moving westward just south of Hawaii into Sunday morning
A hurricane warning is in effect for Big Island, while Hawaii’s seven other major islands – Maui, Molokai, Kahoolawe, Oahu, Lanai, Kauai and Niihau – are under tropical storm warnings
The National Hurricane Center said that, as of 17:00 on Saturday local time (03:00 GMT on Sunday), Lala’s eye wall was “brushing the southern portion of the Big Island”
“Damaging winds and heavy rain will persist across the Big Island throughout tonight and spread westwards across the smaller islands on Sunday,” it said
The hurricane did not make landfall, however, instead coming within 30 miles (48km) of South Point
Green said many roads in Big Island had been affected, with 30 sites having already been visited by crews, and warned residents to brace for an “an incredible amount of water”
“Please be very safe… you do not want to be out on the roads,” he said in a video update posted across his social media platforms
Videos posted by Hawaii’s Department of Transportation show roads flooded with fast-moving water and blocked with fallen trees
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According to the governor, 190 flights have been postponed
At Ellison Onizuka Kona International – Big Island’s largest airport – 40% of flights were grounded, according to tracker Flightaware. Some 80% of flights were called off at its other main airport, Hilo International
The most dire forecasts from the National Weather Service (NWS) have been issued for areas within Big Island’s south-east
“Major rainfall flooding may prompt many evacuations and rescues,” the NWS said, adding that rivers and tributaries “may rapidly overflow their banks in multiple places”
More than 100,000 customers had lost electricity on Hawaii as of Saturday evening local time, according to tracker PowerOutage
Green said three hospitals had also lost power but had backup generators
In Maui, some residents have also been left without water supply as of Saturday afternoon
“Crews responded to the area but were unable to continue their assessment due to inclement weather and multiple downed trees,” a county statement said, adding crews would return once it was safe
Meteorologist Jennifer Myers, who lives in Hilo, eastern Big Island, said landslides had already cut off some roads, while power lines had been ripped down by falling trees
“I’m looking at the river right now, and it’s really, really high,” she told the BBC about the view from her apartment of the Wailuku River as it meets Hilo Bay
“The bay that’s usually blue is like blood red right now because of all the sediment and river water in it.”
Residents were repeatedly urged by officials to prepare for the storm early
Local message boards on Facebook show residents filling bags with sand to protect their homes and inquiring about whether stores remained open in the early hours of Saturday
Hawaii County’s Civil Defense Agency said public shelters were available in every part on Big Island
Hurricanes are categorised on a scale of one to five, with a category one storm such as Lala on the lower end of the scale, with minimal damage expected
Iniki, a powerful category four storm, was the last hurricane to hit Hawaii back in 1992
It caused six deaths and $3bn in damage after making landfall on the southern coast of Kauai
This year has seen a strong El Niño – a periodically occurring area of unusually warm surface water – develop in the Pacific, driven in part by climate change
As hurricanes and typhoons feed off warm sea waters, this spike in ocean temperatures could facilitate a higher number of storms that grow to have a greater intensity
World’s oceans hit record-high July temperatures
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