Hurricane Watch Issued For Hawai‘i, Maui Counties

UPDATE: 11 a.m. HST, Friday, July 24, 2020

The National Hurricane Center has issued a hurricane watch for the Big Island of Hawai‘i and for Maui County — including Maui, Lana‘i, Moloka‘i, and Kaho‘olawe.

A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area, in this case within 36 to 48 hours.

The center of Hurricane Douglas was located near latitude 17° North, longitude 143.5° West. Douglas is moving toward the west-northwest near 18 mph. This motion is expected to continue for the next two days, followed by a slight decrease in forward speed and a turn toward the west. On the forecast track, Douglas will be near the main Hawaiian Islands on Sunday and Monday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 115 mph with higher gusts. Douglas is a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Gradual and steady weakening is expected to continue through the weekend. However, Douglas is still forecast to be near hurricane strength when it nears the islands.

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles (35 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 115 miles.

The estimated minimum central pressure is 28.56 inches.

HAZARDS AFFECTING LAND

WIND: Hurricane conditions are possible on the Big Island late Saturday night and Sunday, with tropical storm conditions possible by Saturday evening. Hurricane conditions are possible over Maui county Sunday, with tropical storm conditions possible beginning late Saturday night.

SURF: Large swells generated by Douglas are expected to begin affecting portions of the Hawaiian Islands on Saturday. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions for a couple of days.

RAINFALL: Heavy rainfall associated with Douglas is expected to affect portions of the Hawaiian Islands from late Saturday night through Monday. Total rain accumulations of 6 to 10 inches with isolated maximum totals of 15 inches are possible, especially in higher terrain. This rain may result in life-threatening flash flooding and landslides.