Hawaii is not waiting for landfall to act.
Hurricane Lowell jumped to a high-end Category 4 with 150 mph winds Friday morning, local time. It was briefly a Category 5 on Wednesday. The National Hurricane Center said it could regain Cat-5 later Friday, then ease toward Category 3 if and when it nears the islands.
Governor Josh Green declared a statewide emergency Thursday, stood up the National Guard, and is sending six high-water vehicles to Kauai. Camping is closed at state parks there. Crews were telling people to leave Friday. Greenโs line: the state is still digging out from Hurricane Lala. It will not wait for this one to get close.
The turn is the whole forecast
Lowell is tracking west, more than 500 miles south of the chain, then is supposed to hook north this weekend. That is the same shape as Hurricane Iniki in 1992 โ Kauaiโs worst storm on record, a Category 4 landfall.
The official map still puts the center about 150 miles west of Niihau or 190 miles west of Kauai late Monday. The Hurricane Center has less confidence than usual. Computer ensembles still span a devastating Kauai or Oahu landfall to a pass 500 miles west that is mostly surf.
A shift of less than 100 miles east of the current track means a major hurricane on the western islands. Even a miss means rough seas, coastal flooding, and rip currents, especially west. Tides are near the monthโs highest. NWS warned major coastal flooding is possible on Kauai, significant on Oahu.
This is storm three in about three weeks. Lala put feet of rain on the Big Island in mid-August. Tropical Storm Moke followed. El Niรฑo took the usual Hawaii force field down.
What this means for you
If you are on Kauai or Niihau, treat Monday as a real date. Officials want 14 days of supplies. If you are on Oahu or farther east, the sure thing this weekend is the water, not the wind.
If you have a Labor Day trip to the islands, watch the Central Pacific Hurricane Center, not a group chat. Watches for Kauai County could come Saturday.
Bottom line: Category 4 tonight. Emergency already signed. The claw-machine turn this weekend decides whether Hawaii gets a scare or a scar.
GLHR NEWS explains the news. Not investment, tax, or trading advice. Do your own work before you act.
