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Hawaii Begins Recovery After Two Kona Lows Bring Worst Flooding in 20 Years

Early estimates put losses above $1 billion, signaling a long recovery.

Overview

  • Crews on Oahu evaluated damage Tuesday following Monday’s sudden downpour in Honolulu’s Manoa Valley, even as North Shore neighborhoods shoveled out thick, red mud.
  • Authorities reported more than 230 rescues and no confirmed deaths after flash floods triggered evacuation orders for about 5,500 North Shore residents and briefly threatened the 120-year-old Wahiawa Dam.
  • A boil-water notice still covers much of the North Shore, and repairs are underway after wastewater overflows, power cuts, and storm damage at Honolulu and Kahului airports.
  • Early statewide estimates now point toward more than $1 billion in losses, with hundreds of homes damaged and farm impacts topping $9.4 million in preliminary tallies.
  • Meteorologists tied the deluge to two Kona lows, winter storms that funnel warm, moisture-rich air onto leeward coasts, with several mountain sites logging 20 to 40 inches of rain.