Hurricane Lowell slammed Hawaii’s western islands with a rare direct hit Monday night, leaving more than 60,000 customers without power across Kaua’i and Oahu as the Category 2 storm lashed the state with 105 mph winds.
Gov. Josh Green, 54, declared a state of emergency last Thursday ahead of Lowell’s approach, giving officials time to position resources before the storm’s outer bands began pounding the archipelago. The declaration came as forecasters tracked a system that had already peaked as a Category 5 hurricane the previous Wednesday with winds up to 160 mph — the first Category 5 in the Central Pacific Basin since Walaka in October 2018.
By late Monday, Lowell’s track had shifted dramatically eastward from initial projections, bringing its center within 70 miles of Ni’ihau and Kaua’i — close enough to qualify as a direct hit under National Hurricane Center definitions, even without formal landfall. The storm was moving north-northeast at 18 mph, its center beginning to pull away north-northwest of Ni’ihau by early Tuesday.
Kaua’i bore the brunt. More than 90 percent of the island lost electricity, according to poweroutage.us, with wind gusts exceeding 80 mph on the eastern side and sustained winds between 65 and 85 mph recorded on neighboring Ni’ihau. FOX Weather Correspondent Katie Byrne reported from Kōloa, where strong gusts, flash flooding and several feet of storm surge inundated coastal areas from late Monday into early Tuesday morning.
The island’s Emergency Management Agency administrator told Byrne that multiple roads were impassable due to downed trees early Tuesday, and one hotel on the eastern part of the island closed and evacuated its guests. A voluntary evacuation notice went to oceanfront property owners, with 275 people sheltering in emergency facilities. The agency shifted messaging Tuesday, asking residents to shelter in place and evacuate only for life-threatening emergencies.
The National Weather Service issued a rare Tornado Watch for portions of Hawaii through 4 a.m. Tuesday — the first such watch from NWS Honolulu since at least 2008. A Hurricane Warning had already been posted late Sunday for Kaua’i County and parts of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the remote island chain northwest of the populated islands. A Flash Flood Warning followed Monday night for northern Kaua’i.
Byrne said officials on Kaua’i had advised residents Monday to stock at least three days of food and supplies, while those in low-lying areas were told to maintain evacuation plans. Precautionary measures extended across the state — including on the Big Island, where Byrne interviewed residents who boarded up homes despite Lowell’s center tracking well to the west.
Heavy rain had already triggered flash flooding on both Kaua’i and Oahu earlier Monday, with additional flooding along Kamehameha Highway north of Waikane in Oahu on Sunday afternoon. Damaging surf pounded southern shores statewide, with waves between 20 and 30 feet possible along south- and west-facing coasts.
“Expect ocean water surging and sweeping over beaches, coastal benches and roadways, creating the potential for significant damage to coastal properties and infrastructure, including roadways,” the National Hurricane Center warned.
FOX Weather Hurricane Specialist Bryan Norcross highlighted the storm’s dangerous overlap with recent disaster zones. “On the Big Island of Hawaii, very heavy rain is forecast as well on the same slopes that were so damaged by Hurricane Lala,” he said. “Throughout the Hawaiian Islands, there will be pockets of heavy rain, especially on the windward slopes.”
Lowell’s rainfall projections were staggering: up to 8 inches along Kaua’i’s coast, with localized pockets up to 2 feet at highest elevations. The Big Island faced 8 to 12 inches, with some pockets reaching a foot. The FOX Forecast Center predicted the worst conditions would hit within hours early Tuesday before rapidly improving as Lowell accelerated away.
The storm’s earlier intensity fluctuations had kept forecasters on edge. After reaching Category 5 strength last Wednesday, Lowell weakened to Category 3 on Thursday, then unexpectedly restrengthened to Category 4 on Friday before finally diminishing to Category 2 for its Hawaii encounter.