Hawaii hurricane update from Tropical Storm Iselle (and Hurricane Julio on the way)

In light of Tropical Storm Iselle battering Hawaii with Hurricane Julio on the way, we’ve decided to suspend our usual Aloha Friday Photo series. We felt it would be insensitive to have our normal jovial post of sunny Hawaii while so many people are going through this major tropical storm. Iselle was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm overnight. That’s good news, however, a tropical storm is still quite serious.

At the moment, Iselle is somewhat stalled over the Hawaii, the Big Island. The tall peaks of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea have partially diverted the storm southward, which will likely lessen the impact to the other islands.

 Here are some bullet points summarizing the impact of Iselle to Hawaii that we’ve gathered as of Friday morning:

– Thankfully, no injuries have been reported.

– High winds with gusts up to 70mph.

– Power outages mainly on Hawaii Island, but Maui and Molokai also have outages.

– Areas of Hawaii Island have already measured more than eight inches of rain. Before the storm finishes that number could increase to over a foot.

– Debris, including trees, are in some of the roadways.

– Traffic lights are out in places.

– Many businesses and beach parks on Oahu, Molokai, Maui, Lanai and of course Hawaii Island are closed.

– With the exception of the evacuation of two hotels in Hilo, Iselle hasn’t had any major impact on the major tourist resorts. Hawaii hotels have a top priority to keep guests safe and provide the best care possible.

– Go Hawaii has an excellent page summarizing attraction closures, flight delays/cancellations and more information.

Hurricanes in Hawaii are very rare events. So, it’s even more surprising that two hurricanes, Iselle and Julio, have set their aim on Hawaii within days of each other. Hurricane Julio, currently a category 2 hurricane, is expected to skim north of the Hawaiian Islands as a tropical storm on Sunday and Monday.

Our prayers and thoughts for safety and protection continue for the residents and visitors of the Hawaiian Islands.