High winds
expected to
ease tomorrow
Part of a Nanakuli house collapses
By Mary Adamski
and the roof is torn off; other homes
around Oahu suffer blackouts
Star-BulletinStrong tradewinds, sometimes gusting at 60 mph, are expected to taper off slowly by tomorrow, National Weather Service forecasters say.
The prediction came as the weather service today issued a high-wind warning for a third straight day, with tradewinds this morning at 25 to 45 mph continuing to cause problems. A high-surf advisory for eastern shores remained in effect.
Winds should die down to about 15 to 30 mph tomorrow, forecasters said.
Lead forecaster Bob Larson said the wind was clocked at 60 mph at Maalaea, Maui, and 64 mph at Kawaihae on the Big Island. Coastal stations had gusts above 40 mph.
The winds are being generated by a very strong high pressure system north-north-east of the state, but they should diminish as the system moves eastward, he said.
"It's of unusual strength for this latitude," he said. "We're on the outer fringe of the high. It's producing a tight pressure gradient across the state."
Police and fire officials this morning reported no major accidents. But emergency crews were busy responding to downed trees and power lines across the island, with outages ranging from momentary to several hours in Kaneohe, Kailua and Tantalus.
Traffic lights in parts of downtown were not operating.
The Red Cross was assisting a Nanakuli family left homeless after winds collapsed part of their Holopono Street house, and ripped off part of the roof.
Yesterday, strong gusts tore strips off roofs, including a city refuse station in Kalihi and homes in Nanakuli, Manoa Valley, Kaimuki and Waialae Nui ridge. Trees were reported down on Pali Highway, Tantalus Drive and Kahala Avenue.
Police closed Kamehameha Highway in Hauula to late afternoon traffic yesterday while Hawaiian Electric Co. crews repaired power lines downed by the wind. About 400 customers lost power for about three hours.
"The wind is really bad. I never heard it that bad. I'm so scared to go outside," said Lani Burt of Nanakuli, just after her garage roof was ripped off. She said half of the roof is hanging and the other half was thrown across the yard of her Hakimo Road home.
The combination of blustery day and high surf led the Oahu Water Safety Division to close Makapuu Beach yesterday morning. All beaches were open today. But officials of the Rip Curl World Cup of Surfing postponed the Sunset Beach competition yesterday and again today.
Oahu Civil Defense Agency Director Joe Reed said there was a steady flow of reports about wind-related incidents from the Honolulu Fire Department, police and the electric utility, "but no panic calls."
Reed said the majority of downed trees and roof damage was occurring on the Leeward side of the island because of "downslope acceleration" when the tradewinds pick up speed after crossing the Koolau Mountains.
The Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency closed Richardson Beach and other beaches around Hilo yesterday, said Deputy Director Bruce Butts.
Power outages from toppled poles or loosened lines were repaired in the Kau area of the Big Island, at Upolu Point in North Kohala and in several areas in west Maui, Civil Defense officials said.
On Oahu, an 8:45 a.m. power outage occurred at a transmitter station on Palehua Ridge above Nanakuli, which serves several radio stations. A backup generator kept the radio stations on the air.
HECO spokesman Fred Kobashikawa said crews today would continue to check for the source of the damage by walking the rough terrain along the power-line route.
"Our crews are working long hours," he said. "We want to restore power as quickly as possible, but as safely as possible."
Aside from Hauula, the wind also cut power to 330 Waipio customers for about two hours, until power was restored at 5 p.m. Other outages were repaired in Pupukea, Waianae Nui, Leahi Avenue in Waikiki and in the Kapiolani-Artesian Street area, where 1,900 customers were affected.
Star-Bulletin writer Jaymes K.S. Song also contributed to this report.
