Hawaii is now facing flooding from Tropical Storm Moke just a week after destructive flooding and winds from Hurricane Lala last weekend.
(MORE: Hurricane Lala cleanup begins in Hawaii, 100 Big Island homes damaged)
Where is Moke right now?
Newly-formed Tropical Storm Moke is located more than 500 miles southeast of Hilo, moving toward the west-northwest. Moke is pronounced “MOH-keh.”
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The National Hurricane Center issued its first advisory on Tropical Depression Two-C Thursday morning. It was upgraded to a tropical storm Friday morning.
(MORE: What tropical terms mean)
What is the forecast?
Most models are in agreement on the forecast track, which takes Moke farther south of the islands than Lala last weekend.
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Rainfall and a change in winds and surf are expected by late Saturday.
The timing of Moke’s closest approach to the Big Island appears to be Sunday, after which it moves south of the rest of the island chain on Monday.
Moke may eventually battle wind shear and drier air, and that should keep its wind intensity in check as a tropical storm.
What are the impacts to Hawaii?
The most serious concern is additional heavy rain and flash flooding just days after Hurricane Lala triggered damaging flooding on the Big Island, and locally flooding rain in other parts of the island chain.
A flood watch is in effect for the Big Island.
According to the National Hurricane Center, 5 to 15 inches of rain is possible on the Big Island, especially over the mountains and eastern slopes.
(MORE: Back-to-back Hawaii threats in one week have only happened once before since 1950)
This could lead to additional life-threatening flash flooding and landslides.
Other parts of the islands could see 1 to 4 inches of rain, which could lead to local flash flooding, again especially over mountains and nearby slopes.
With Moke’s track expected to be farther south than Lala, the chance of any tropical-storm-force winds in the islands is diminishing. A few higher gusts are possible over the peaks of the Big Island.