Heavy rains herald Heavy rains Monday and yesterday and high surf along the North Shore signaled a shift into the winter season for the islands, but that doesn't mean a lot of wet weather ahead.
winter weather shift
But a moderate El Nino is expected
Rain disrupts isles
to produce unusually dry monthsBy Helen Altonn
haltonn@starbulletin.com"The potential is for a drier than normal winter period," said Jim Weyman, meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service's Honolulu Forecast Office.
Weyman and other weather officials in a briefing yesterday described what to expect with a "weak to moderate" El Nino and typical winter hazards.
Monday night rains resulted from normal winter patterns -- a low-pressure area, a cold front and unstable air, said Tom Heffner, warning coordination meteorologist.
He urged the public to be prepared for "typical hazards."
Sixty-four weather-related deaths in Hawaii from 1970 to 2001 were linked to high surf and 27 to flash floods, according to weather service data.
Since 1980, flooding has caused $225 million worth of damage and disrupted services, said Larry Kanda, Hawaii State Civil Defense mitigation officer.
Two years ago, floods caused about $88 million worth of damage to Big Island roads and bridges, he said.
"The biggest problem is to convince people to prepare for natural hazards," Kanda said.
Honolulu Fire Department Battalion Chief Paul Gerard said firefighters have responded to many incidents of people suddenly swept away in swollen streams, culverts and ditches.
Gerard described the harrowing rescue last January of two children who were washed four to five blocks underground from a stream in Makiki to the area near the Kalakaua Avenue-South King Street intersection.
He said it's essential to educate the public that flash flooding occurs in cities and residential areas as well as in rural areas.
Kevin Kodama, senior service hydrologist at the weather service, said, "Even if we issue a perfect warning, it doesn't mean anything if the public doesn't know what to do with it,"
Half of flood fatalities involve vehicles crossing a flooded roadway, he said.
Honolulu fire Capt. Kenison Tejada stressed dangers of the surf, recalling how a wave knocked a couple on the North Shore into the water last year while they were playing on the beach. The man made it safely ashore but the woman disappeared, Tejada said.
Weyman, in an update on El Nino, cited potential below-normal temperatures and rainfall and possible late season hurricanes and increased high surf.
Playing a vital role in the state-federal-county system to protect Hawaii's people are 300 volunteer observers who monitor rain gauges and collect weather data for the National Weather Service.
Herbert M. "Monty" Richards Jr., president and general manager of Kahua Ranch, near Waimea on the Big Island, was recognized yesterday with the John Campanius Holm Award for 37 years of volunteer weather service.
Richards, who has been at the ranch 48 years, said it has had a rain gauge since 1930, providing a historical record of monthly weather changes for more than 70 years.
Two gauges are automatic, but he reads the third one every day. He said he was going home to read it and find out how much rain fell while he was in Honolulu.
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