Hawaii is bracing for what could be its first direct hurricane strike in more than three decades. Category one storm Lala gained hurricane strength Saturday, churning off the coast with 75mph winds and threatening to dump up to 25 inches of rain on Big Island.
A hurricane warning is in effect for Big Island. Maui County, Oahu, Kauai and Niihau are under tropical storm warnings. Officials told residents to prepare for life-threatening conditions, including floods and mudslides.
The storm is expected to make landfall or pass close to the southern tip of Big Island on Saturday before continuing west. It may weaken into a tropical storm as it passes the state's other islands. The last time a hurricane made landfall directly on Big Island was 155 years ago, according to the BBC, which cited the Associated Press.
The last hurricane to strike Hawaii overall was Iniki in 1992, a powerful category four storm that caused six deaths and $3 billion in damage.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green warned residents to prepare for a serious event. "Damaging winds, heavy rain, flash flooding and dangerous surf are possible across the state through the weekend," he posted on X, warning of "an incredible amount of water."
The National Weather Service issued its most dire forecasts for Big Island's southeastern areas, warning that major rainfall flooding may prompt many evacuations and rescues, and that rivers and tributaries may rapidly overflow their banks in multiple places. A worst-case scenario also includes a three-foot storm surge.
Nearly 37,000 customers had already lost electricity on Hawaii by Saturday afternoon. Dozens of flights were cancelled. At Ellison Onizuka Kona International, Big Island's largest airport, 40 percent of flights were grounded, and roughly 80 percent were called off at Hilo International.
Meteorologist Jennifer Myers, who lives in Hilo on eastern Big Island, told the BBC that landslides had already cut off some roads and that power lines had been ripped down by falling trees. She described the Wailuku River as it met Hilo Bay. "I'm looking at the river right now, and it's really, really high," she said. "The bay that's usually blue is like blood red right now because of all the sediment and river water in it."
Hawaii County's Civil Defense Agency said public shelters were available in every county on Big Island. Local residents were spotted on Facebook message boards filling sandbags and checking whether stores remained open in the early hours of Saturday morning.
