Hawaii Faces More Tropical Threats From El Niño-Charged Pacific
A powerful patch of thunderstorms and wind is expected to strengthen into Tropical Storm Lala by Thursday before taking aim Hawaii this weekend.
The weather system was 935 miles (1,500 kilometers) east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii, with top winds of 35 miles per hour, just below tropical storm strength on Wednesday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Currently, the storm is forecast to remain below hurricane strength as it nears the island chain early Saturday.
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“Interests in the Hawaiian Islands should closely monitor the progress of this system,” Richard Pasch, senior hurricane specialist at the center, wrote in a forecast. “A Hurricane or Tropical Storm Watch will likely be required for these islands by early Thursday.”
Hawaii was under threat last month as Hurricane Fausto neared the 50th U.S. state before ultimately weakening and skirting to the north of the island chain. While tropical storms have menaced Hawaii in recent years, if this storm reaches hurricane-strength with winds of at least 74 mph it will be the first one to hit in 34 years. The odds of intense storms may by higher this year as a powerful El Niño builds across the Pacific Ocean.
“Typically with El Niño we have seen a lot more central Pacific hurricanes forming,” said Abby Frazier, a climatologist and professor of geography at Clark University. “We can expect the frequency of hurricanes that threaten Hawaii to increase.”
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Iniki was the last hurricane to hit the state, landing as a Category 4 storm in September 1992, killing six and causing $3.1 billion in damage, adjusted for inflation, according to the US National Centers for Environmental Information.
Even near-misses can cause havoc for Hawaii. In 2023, Hurricane Dora passed far to the south of the island state, but helped set up weather patterns that fanned high winds across Maui where fires raged out of control and killed more than 100 people. Hawaiian Electric Industries formalized a $2 billion agreement to settle damage claims from a deadly wildfire that razed the historic town of Lahaina.
Hawaii has also had its share of trouble this year, with several Kona storms that sent flood waters down mountain sides, threatening residents and prompting many to flee their homes.
Top photo: A stormy sea in front of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel brought in by Hurricane Lane as seen from the East end of Waikiki Beach on August 24, 2018. Bloomberg.