Heavy rain and powerful winds are expected to bring flash floods and extreme surf to the Hawaiian islands over the weekend as Hurricane Nolo bears down on areas still recovering from previous storms.
Nolo was churning slowly south of Hawaii’s Big Island on Saturday with maximum sustained winds of 105mph (165km/h). The storm’s center was about 145 miles (235km) south of Hawaii’s southern-most point and could strengthen into a potentially life-threatening and catastrophic storm through the weekend.
Forecasters warned of possible flooding and mudslides, with parts of the Big Island expected to see rainfall totals up to 20in (51cm). Heavy rainfall also was expected on Hawaii’s other islands.
“Don’t venture out if you don’t have to into the dangerous flooding environment, but also high winds. We can have trees and power lines down,” Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center, said Friday.
