Hawaii braces for Hurricane Lowell

Hurricane Lowell, a major Category 3 storm in the Pacific Ocean, has crept closer to the Hawaiian islands with forecasters warning the weather systems could unleash tornadoes on the islands of Kauai and Niihau.

On Sunday, the United States National Hurricane Center issued emergency hurricane and tropical storm warnings for the island chain, advising residents and visitors to brace for severe windstorms and possible mudslides as early as Monday night local time. Lowell is predicted to skirt just west of Hawaii’s most northwest main islands, Niihau and Kauai, as well as portions of the vast Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, tracking from south to north.

Mayor Derek Kawakami of Kauai issued an emergency proclamation in anticipation of the hurricane.

Kauai faces potential coastal flooding of up to 1 metre (3 feet) caused by rolling storm surges and unusually high tides.

The storm has been gradually pivoting toward the more rural islands in the Aloha state, moving north at 9 km/h (6 mph), according to the hurricane center. Lowell started as a tropical depression that formed over the Pacific Ocean on August 27. It was driven by a combination of warm ocean temperatures and an active El Nino pattern.

Lowell has seesawed between Category 3 and Category 5 intensity as its trajectory mushroomed. It first reached Category 5 intensity at 257 km/h (160 mph) on Wednesday morning local time, becoming the second Category 5 hurricane of the season. Only two other Pacific hurricanes in recorded history have regrouped to a Category 5 after losing strength mid-path: Emilia (1994) and Ioke (2006).

Ioke was the strongest ever recorded in the central Pacific, while the island of Kauai sustained billions in damage during Hurricane Inike, a 1992 Category 4 storm and the largest recorded in Hawaii’s history. Six people were killed.

Forecasters said Lowell could bring rainfall of 150mm to 250mm (6 to 10 inches), with maximum totals of 360mm (14 inches).