Hurricane Lala brought floods and landslides to Hawaii, leaving one person dead and homes destroyed
Kyiv • UNN
Hurricane Lala caused flooding and landslides in Hawaii, destroying several homes. One person died in an accident, and 219,000 customers were left without power.
Category 1 Hurricane Lala caused flash floods and landslides in Hawaii, destroying several homes, while one person was killed in a car accident. BBC reports, UNN writes.
Details
The Big Island was hit hardest by the disaster, although the hurricane passed it without making landfall. In the coastal communities of Naalehu and Waiohinu, several homes were torn from their foundations, after which search-and-rescue operations began.
Although the storm’s center did not cross the coast, up to 89 cm of rain fell in some areas. Powerful torrents of water rushed down mountain slopes, causing floods and landslides.
Rescue operations continue in Hawaii
Hawaii County reported that the eye of the storm passed approximately 48 km from the South Point of the Big Island. The National Weather Service office in Honolulu received reports of two homes washed away by heavy rains.
What makes this very difficult is that there is fast-moving water, there is debris, there are boulders on the road, and it is dark
About 180 Hawaii National Guard service members were deployed to respond to the effects of the disaster. According to PowerOutage, about 219,000 customers were left without electricity. Three hospitals were operating on backup generators, while 190 flights were delayed because of the bad weather.
The storm continues to pose a threat
After Lala’s wind speed reached 145 km/h, the storm weakened to a tropical storm on Sunday. Winds decreased to approximately 108 km/h, but tropical storm warnings remained in effect for all eight major Hawaiian islands.
Lala is expected to bring an additional 4 to 8 inches of rain to the Big Island and windward Maui, with maximum rainfall totals of 30 to 35 inches
Authorities warned that the threat of additional floods and landslides remained. The last time a powerful hurricane directly struck Hawaii was in 1992, when Category 4 Hurricane Iniki caused six deaths and approximately $3 billion in damage.
Hurricane Lala is bearing down on Hawaii and threatens record rainfall15.08.26, 22:44 • 4324 views