Hurricane Lala Skirts Big Island, Leaving One Dead Amid Widespread Damage
Fierce winds and heavy downpours hit Hawaii, causing power outages and flight delays as tropical storm warnings persist across the islands.
Callum Smith
Hurricane Lala skirted Hawaii's Big Island on Saturday, bringing fierce winds and heavy downpours without making landfall.
The storm inflicted substantial damage, with 19 roofs lost and 190 flights postponed on the Big Island alone. Tens of thousands of homes across the affected areas lost power, as powerful winds reportedly knocked out power to nearly 70 percent of the Big Island.
Roadways flooded; rivers transformed into raging torrents. Higher elevations on the Big Island are expected to receive up to 35 inches of rain, though some forecasters claimed the island could get as much as 25 inches.
The National Hurricane Center warned that heavy rainfall into Sunday could produce flooding and mudslides, while powerful waves pound the coast. Tropical storm warnings extended to Maui, Oahu, Kauai, and neighboring islands, with hurricane-force winds expected to continue into the overnight hours.
The storm moved west-northwest at 15 mph with sustained winds of 70 mph. The weather system is expected to weaken gradually as it moves onward, though forecasters expect Lala to regain hurricane strength midweek after moving far west of the island chain.
Residents prepared for the storm by securing generators, stocking supplies, and opening shelters. Shelters opened, events canceled, and ranchers urged to secure their cattle on Saturday.
You definitely want to be home, do not be out on the roads.
Governor Green advised, "You definitely want to be home, do not be out on the roads." Bobby Camara, a resident, noted the importance of self-reliance, stating, "I think stocking up is part of life over here. ... You learn to be self-reliant."
Camara also described his plan to "hunker down, cross my fingers, hope the lights don’t go out." Christine Matsuda reported that "big gusts every few minutes rattle the whole house" and that "We're finding unexpected leaks in places that don't see water under normal conditions."
Mike Caputo highlighted the danger posed by large vegetation, explaining, "They’re not very sturdy, but they grow extremely large. They can make roads impassable." The Big Island could suffer its first direct hurricane hit in 155 years, drawing comparisons to Hurricane Iniki, a Category 4 storm that made landfall in 1992, causing $3 billion in damage and killing six people.