Overview
- The system moved west away from Hawaii after its eyewall brushed the Big Island and weakened from a Category 1 hurricane to a tropical storm, National Hurricane Center advisories said on Monday.
- Emergency rainfall totals topped three feet in several mountain locations, including Laupahoehoe (about 43.5 inches) and Kapalua (about 48 inches), which triggered life‑threatening flash floods and mudslides.
- At least 100 homes were damaged, destroyed or swept from their foundations on the Big Island and officials reported multiple road and bridge failures, including a collapse on Pāhala Highway that cut off access to a regional hospital.
- Utility data show roughly 111,000 to 117,300 customers without power across the islands and crews supported by the Hawaii National Guard and U.S. Coast Guard are conducting search, rescue and damage assessments while officials warn restorations in remote terrain could take days to months.
- Forecasters expect Lala to strengthen back into a hurricane over the open Pacific later this week and officials say the storm’s severity was amplified by unusually warm central Pacific conditions tied to a strong El Niño and an ongoing marine heat wave.