A flood watch is still in effect for the Big Island, as well as a flood advisory for Maui, as people try to assess the devastating flood damage.
The already battered Hawaiian islands may face more flooding today, with a flood watch still in effect for the Big Island and a flood advisory in Maui issued through Monday afternoon.
The devastating “kona low,” the name for seasonal Hawaiian cyclones, continues to move across the state after causing widespread destruction in Oahu and Maui over the weekend. Possible heavy rain and isolated thunderstorms now threaten the Big Island with flooding, as an additional 1 to 2 inches of rain may come down over already saturated ground.
Several mountain locations have seen 20 to 40 inches of rain across the island chain during what has become Hawaii’s heaviest rainstorm in 20 years.
“Everyone’s kind of in the street, just shoveling out mud and pulling out soaking debris and doing whatever they can to kind of start drying things out,” he said. “But we’re still without power here, so it’s making some of those efforts a little more difficult.”