HONOLULU (KHON2) — A severe winter storm will finish tormenting the Hawaiian islands by Sunday, Feb. 2, according to National Weather Service forecasters.
The worst is over for Oahu, Maui Couty and Kauai County after residents experienced gusty winds, thunderstorms and heavy rain.
“Some wind gusts were as high as 70 miles per hour. We had several severe thunderstorm watches and a large chunk of the area had two to six inches of rain with a peak total of about 10 inches in Kula on Maui where they received most of the rain last night,” Jon Jelsema, NWS senior forecaster explained.
As of Friday, Jan. 31 morning, the storm system completely engulfed Hawaii Island with residents experiencing showers and thunderstorms.
Jelsema added that the top of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa Summit is expected to see six to 12 inches of snow.
The leeward side of the Big Island is still under a flash flood warning. Forecasters said they believe the heavy rain and thunderstorms will begin to settle down as the day progresses.
“The Big Island later today, this afternoon and tonight should get a chance to dry out like the rest of us are seeing,” said Robert Ballard, NWS Science and Operations Manager.
Crews on Maui are also beginning their cleanup efforts after South Maui saw heavy flooding during the late-night hours of Jan. 30.
KHON2’s Nikki Schenfeld joined WakeUp2Day live from Kihei where several roads were covered with mud and flood waters.
Drivers are advised to proceed with caution and seek alternate routes where applicable. The National Guard was activated in Kihei to help direct traffic.
All Maui County offices and public schools are closed as storm conditions are expected to linger over Maui throughout Friday, Jan. 31.
The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Operations Center was also activated to connect with each county early on.
“All the emergency managers shared the same message: be prepared for power outages because we saw it across all the islands and just know your situation and have a plan,” said James Barros Hi-EMA Administrator.
Barros added that Hi-EMA will maintain open lines of communication, especially as the winter storm moves across Hawaii Island over the weekend.
But there is always light at the end of the tunnel! Conditions are expected to improve by Sunday, Feb. 2 and will be replaced by normal Hawaii trade winds.
Check out more news from around Hawaii
“Pleasent weekend. It’s gonna be beautiful weather with much cooler temperatures and more winter-like, normal Hawaiian weather,” said Jelsema.