Glenn James
Hawaii Weather Today
Creator, Author, and Administrator for 30 years

 

The winds are off an on very blustery here in Kula, Maui, enough so that I’m concerned that my power will go out, and if so, I’ll be unable to do any additional updating to this website. I’ll be back as soon as possible after the power returns.

 

>>> Be safe everyone, and if you can, stay home and off the wet roads here in Hawaii…makes sense right?!

 

Lala just became a Category 1 Hurricane…more information down the page from here

 

The latest update to this website was at 107pm Saturday afternoon HST


Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands Saturday afternoon: 

2.579  Mount Waialeale, Kauai
1.70  Mililani, Oahu
5.36  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.06  Lanai City, Lanai
13.39  Waikamoi Treeline, Maui
15.11  Laupahoehoe, Big Island!


The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph) Saturday afternoon: 

35  Lawai, Kauai – E 
62  Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu – ENE
43  Makapulapai, Molokai – ENE
m   Lanai – m
68  Kealaloloa, Maui – NE
81  Puuloa, Big Island – NE!


Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of our tallest mountain Mauna Kea (~13,800 feet high) on the Big Island of Hawaii. Here’s the webcam for the (~10,023 feet high) Haleakala Crater on Maui (out of operation). These webcams are available during the daylight hours here in the islands, and at night whenever there’s a big moon shining down. Also, at night you will be able to see the stars, and the sunrise and sunset too…depending upon weather conditions.

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Big Blue…click twice for largest version

 

https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES18/ABI/SECTOR/tpw/13/GOES18-TPW-13-900x540.gif

  Tropical cyclone 01C (Lala) just south-southeast

 

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Counter-clockwise rotating clouds associated with
Tropical Cyclone Lala which will be moving by just to the south of Hawaii 

 

time of arrival graphic

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Localized showers…many are heavy 

 

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Please open this link to see details on any current Watches, Warnings and Advisories noted above




~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

Glenn’s Saturday comments:  I’m at home here in upper Kula, Maui, Hawaii

203am, it’s cloudy with off an on showers, some are heavy here in upper Kula with strong and gusty winds, meanwhile, the temperature at my place is a relatively warm 66 degrees…with the relative humidity 81%

436am, it continues to be windy and wet here in upper Kula , and fortunately the power is still on.

534am, blustery and wet here in upper Kula

836am, no change here, raining and very windy, although some sunshine…and a rainbow!

1055am, a slight break in the action here at my weather tower, the winds and rains have backed off very temporarily I’m sure.

1208pm, We’re definitely having a break in the action, although it continues to sprinkle…with the winds way down from what they were!

103pm, cloudy, and lightly raining, with a light to moderate breeze, what a change from last night and this morning. It was very lightly raining a bit ago, so I put my raincoat on, and headed out to stretch my legs…about half through my walk the rain started to come down moderately heavy, so my shoes and pants got wet. I enjoyed my little adventure and it was good to get outside.

 

>>> I would highly recommend keeping all your devices charged up, as we could very easily have power outages!

>>> I made lots of ice in my freezer, to use to keep my refrigerated food from going bad, if the power goes out!

 

Hawaii’s Weather Highlights…as of Saturday afternoon: Hurricane Lala will move over or just south of Big Island today and continue to the west-northwest or west through the remainder of the weekend. High winds, potentially flooding rains, and high surf impacts will be felt statewide. A Hurricane Warning is in effect for Big Island, and a Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the rest of the state. Trade wind weather will return Monday.

Short Term Update: Lala has been upgraded to a hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. The track has remained fairly stable, with the center forecast to move over or just south of South Point on Big Island. From there, it will remain south of the other islands as it moves WNW the remainder of today and tonight, then west Sunday. Rainfall amounts in the past 6 hours range up to 6 inches in areas on the Big Island and Maui. Additional heavy rain will fall through the afternoon there, before spreading east to the other islands. Flash Flood Warnings and Advisories have been issued for parts of the Big Island and Maui, and will likely be needed later today into tonight for mainly windward and mountain areas on the other islands.

Weather Narrative..as of Saturday afternoon: The main forecast concern through late Sunday will be impacts from Tropical Storm Lala. As of 5am this morning, Tropical Storm Lala was located about 110 miles southeast of South Point moving west-northwest around 13 mph. The center of rotation can be picked up on radar as it drifts closer towards our local coastal waters.

Based on the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center, Lala is expected to move over or near the southern end of the Big Island by this afternoon, then continue moving to the west-northwest, with the center of circulation remaining south of the smaller islands. Remember impacts can occur well outside the center of the storm.

Please stay up to date on the latest forecasts, and prepare for the potential impacts described below.

STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS…Damaging tropical storm force winds (39 mph to 73 mph) have already begun across parts of the Big Island, and may begin across Maui County as early as late this morning, Oahu as early as this evening, and Kauai as early as tonight. A Hurricane Warning is in effect for the Big Island and surrounding waters due to a non- negligible chance of hurricane force winds (74 mph or greater). A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the rest of the state and surrounding waters. Localized areas of highly enhanced and damaging winds are possible over and downwind of the mountainous terrain, even well away from the tropical cyclone center. These localized strong winds and gusts will also be felt in advance of the arrival of Lala and should be kept in mind as last minute preparations are being made.

HEAVY RAINFALL…Periods of heavy rainfall associated with Tropical Storm Lala have already begun to affect the Big Island, and are expected to reach Maui County by this afternoon, and Oahu and Kauai by this evening into Sunday. Orographic (mountain) enhancement will result in locally higher rainfall totals where moist tropical flow interacts with island terrain. If heavier rainfall persists over the same locations, flash flooding and rapidly rising streams are possible. The location of heaviest rain will likely favor windward portions of the Big Island and Maui. The current forecast for windward portion of the Big Island has 10 to 20 inches of rain, with locally higher amounts. Rainfall totals of 8 to 12 inches are possible on windward Maui and up 8 inches of rainfall could occur across the remainder of the island chain. While the highest rainfall amounts will be focused over windward areas, leeward areas will also have a significant flood risk. Heavy rain could persist into Monday for some areas. A Flood Watch remains in effect for the Big Island and Maui County through late tonight, and for Oahu, Kauai, and Niihau from this evening to early Monday morning.

LARGE AND ROUGH SURF…Lala is expected to generate a large easterly swell as it moves northwestward. Surf may build along exposed east and southeast facing shores from east to west as the system approaches. A High Surf Warning remains in effect for east facing shores of Big Island, Maui, Molokai and Oahu, and a High Surf Advisory is posted for east facing shores of Kauai. Very large and extremely rough seas are expected to rapidly increase Saturday and Sunday on exposed southeast and east shores and may produce damaging surf, significant beach erosion, and overwash across vulnerable coastal infrastructure, mainly on the Big Island of Hawaii.

STORM SURGE: Highest storm surge up to 3 feet is forecast for the eastern side of the Big Island.

The combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The water could reach the following heights above ground somewhere in the indicated areas if the peak surge occurs at the time of high tide…

Hawaii…1 to 3 ft

The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast, where the surge will be accompanied by large and dangerous waves. Surge-related flooding depends on the relative timing of the surge and the tidal cycle, and can vary greatly over short distances.

 

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Here’s a near real-time Wind Profile of the Pacific Ocean – along with a Closer View of the islands / Here’s the latest Weather Map / Looping Surface Precipitation…through the next 8-days / Vog Map

 

Marine Conditions…as of Saturday afternoon: NE winds continue to strengthen today as Tropical Storm Lala passes very near the southern tip of the Big Island. The strongest winds are anticipated Saturday evening into Saturday night for the waters surrounding the Big Island and Maui. Winds peak for the waters surrounding Kauai and Oahu during Sunday. Hurricane Warnings and Tropical Storm Warnings remain in effect for all coastal and offshore waters.

Expect dangerous conditions including torrential rainfall, a few thunderstorms, and high surf. Lala will track WNW through the weekend, clearing the western islands by Monday. Tuesday into the rest of the week, a return to easterly trades across the region is expected.

Surf increases quickly today along east facing shores as a medium- period swell generated by Tropical Storm Lala fills in. The High Surf Warning remains in effect for E facing shores of the Big Island and Maui as well as the SE facing coasts of the Puna and Kau Districts where the highest surf is expected. Surf is also forecast to reach low end warning criteria for E facing shores of Oahu and Molokai and advisory levels for Kauai. Surf will rapidly decline Saturday night for the southern islands but may take until Sunday to fall below advisory threshold for Oahu and Kauai as Lala begins to gain distance from the island chain.

For N shores, anticipate choppy conditions with swell energy wrapping from the east through the weekend. For S shores, surf will remain below the advisory threshold but may experience a small boost in short-period swell as Lala tracks south of the island chain on Saturday night. Longer period energy from a distant Southern Ocean swell will also help to maintain south shore surf Sunday into Monday.

 

>>> Highest Temperature Friday, August 14, 2026 – 111 degrees near Medicine Lodge, KS


>>> Lowest Temperature Friday, August 14, 2026 – 35 degrees near Old Station, CA

 

Wet weather, winds push through islands Monday


World-wide Tropical Cyclone Activity

 


>>> Here’s a link to the latest Pacific Disaster Center’s Weather Wall



>>> Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones


Central Tropical Atlantic:

Invest 94L

A tropical wave over the central tropical Atlantic about midway between the Cabo Verde Islands and the Lesser Antilles continues to produce disorganized showers and thunderstorms. Limited development of this system is possible over the next day or two before the system encounters strong upper-level winds to the east of the Lesser Antilles.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent
* Formation chance through 7 days…low…near 0 percent

 

>>> Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> Gulf of America: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days.

 

Northeast Pacific: 

Tropical Cyclone 08E (Hernan)…is located 1690 west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California

HERNAN EXPECTED TO BECOME A REMNANT LOW TODAY

According to the NHC advisory number 11…

The depression is moving toward the west near 12 mph and this general motion is expected to continue through the next few days. Maximum sustained winds are near 35 mph with higher gusts. Slow weakening is forecast during the few days, and Hernan is forecast to degenerate to a remnant low pressure area later today. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1006 mb (29.71 inches).

 

>>> South of Mexico:

An area of low pressure could form several hundred miles south of the coast of southern Mexico near the middle portion of next week. Some gradual development of this system is possible, while the system moves westward or west-northwestward well south of Mexico.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent
* Formation chance through 7 days…low…30 percent

 

>>> Western portion of the eastern Pacific:

An area of low pressure could form well to the west-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula by the middle of next week. Gradual development of this system is possible thereafter while it moves generally westward across the western portion of the east Pacific.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent.
* Formation chance through 7 days…low…30 percent

 

Central North Pacific: 

Tropical Cyclone 01C (Lala)…is located about 65 miles south-southeast  of South Point, Hawaii

LALA SLOWING DOWN AND TURNING NORTHWEST AS IT BEGINS TO INTERACT WITH THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII …WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE ON THE BIG ISLAND THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON

According to the NHC advisory number 14…

Lala is moving toward the northwest near 8 mph. Some erratic motion is likely later today and tonight while Lala interacts with the Big Island of Hawaii. After passing the Big Island, Lala is expected to turn westward on Sunday with an increase in forward speed, with the core of the storm staying south of remainder of the main Hawaiian Islands and the easternmost Northwestern Hawaiian Islands through the early part of next week. Maximum sustained winds are near 75 mph with higher gusts. Some slight strengthening is possible during the next few hours, but significant weakening is likely tonight after Lala interacts with the Big Island of Hawaii. Some restrengthening is possible early next week. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 35 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 175 miles. The estimated minimum central pressure is 988 mb (29.18 inches).

 

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

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>>> Southwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s the link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)



Interesting: Amid Drought, Hundreds of French Rivers Are Drying Up

An ongoing drought in Europe has sapped French rivers. Officials say that 43 percent of small waterways in France have been partially or completely dried up.

Of the more than 3,000 small waterways in France, 1,373 have seen their flow interrupted or halted, according to an analysis from the French Office for Biodiversity. The agency said rivers were desiccated in every region, describing the drying as “the most critical situation ever observed at this time of year.”

Large waterways have also been hard hit. On the Loire River, water levels typically drop in the summer, inhibiting boat travel, but this year sightseeing boats had to suspend operations a month earlier than usual as the river dried up. In Paris, the Seine is being sustained by flows released from reservoirs that stored up surplus water over the winter.

Read More: Yale University