Late Saturday night, Hurricane Lala made landfall, resulting in at least one casualty due to a storm-related car accident on Hawaii Island.
Governor Josh Green described the event as a “monstrous storm,” confirming the destruction of roofs on 19 buildings.
The Big Island experienced gigantic waves crashing against its shores as Lala passed by. The winds were so intense that they knocked over palm trees, while heavy rains created fast-moving runoff that was almost blowing horizontally.
By Sunday morning, the National Hurricane Center reported that Lala had been downgraded to a tropical storm.
Power outages affected over 130,000 homes across Hawaii’s three major islands, as noted by the power outage tracking site. Green mentioned that at least three hospitals were relying on generators.
In response to the flash floods that swept away some homes in coastal areas like Naalehu and Waiohinu, Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda announced the initiation of a search-and-rescue operation involving Civil Defense, National Guard, and Coast Guard units.
Alameda emphasized the challenges posed by the situation: “What makes this so difficult is that the water is flowing, there’s debris, there are rocks in the road and it’s dark.”
As of 2 a.m. Sunday, the hurricane’s center was around 170 kilometers west-northwest of Kailua-Kona and about 100 miles south of Honolulu, with tropical storm winds reaching 175 miles from the center.
Lala’s maximum wind speed was clocked at 70 mph, with it moving northwest at roughly 15 mph. Forecasters predict that it could regain hurricane strength by midweek as it advances further west of the island chain.
Forecasts indicate that some highland areas of the Big Island, particularly around Mauna Kea, could receive up to 35 inches of rain by the time Lala dissipates. This amount of rain could destabilize steep slopes where many of the island’s residents live in makeshift, off-grid housing.
