Hawaii braces for ‘catastrophic flooding’ as storm brings heavy rain, knocks out power
Global News
The National Weather Service said a low pressure system is slowly moving from east to west and has lingered on the edge of the archipelago.
A strong storm packing high winds and extremely heavy rain flooded roads and knocked out power across Hawaii, with officials warning Monday of potentially worse conditions ahead.
The National Weather Service said the storm brings the threat of “catastrophic flooding” in the coming days as a low pressure system slowly moves from east to west and lingered on the edge of the archipelago.
“Now is the time to make sure you have an emergency plan in place and supplies ready should you need to move away from rising water,” said Gov. David Ige, who issued a state of emergency for all of the state’s islands Monday night.
On Oahu, where four shelters had been opened, most of the beaches in Waikiki were empty Monday as only a few people walked with umbrellas during passing heavy showers. Roadways were flooding in the area and cars crept through downtown as water gushed out of manhole covers.
On Maui, power outages and flooding already have been reported, with more than a foot (30 centimeters) of rain falling in some areas.
The relentless rain forced three couples from the U.S. mainland to postpone their Maui elopements, said Nicole Bonanno, owner of Bella Bloom Floral, a wedding florist and boutique in Wailea.
The weather also led to delayed flower deliveries, a lei company with no power and employees braving flooded roads littered with debris, Bonanno said.
“The roads, everything are a mess,” she said. “There are lots of trees down.”