Lala weakens to tropical storm as it lashes Hawaii with heavy wind and rain | Hurricanes

Hurricane Lala weakened to a tropical storm on Sunday after skirting Hawaii without making landfall, but it wasn’t done punishing the Big Island with hurricane-force gusts. Total rainfall of nearly 3ft (1 meter) was expected on the higher windward slopes, turning rivers into raging torrents and threatening mudslides.

The Hawaii governor, Josh Green, said at least one person died in a car accident in the South Point area of the Big Island, where more than 100 homes were destroyed. A little over 183,000 utility customers remained without power across Hawaii by Sunday mid-afternoon, according to the utility tracker PowerOutage.us. At least three hospitals were operating on generator power, and 19 roofs were lost, Green said.

A search-and-rescue mission including civil defense, the national guard and coast guard was launched after flash floods apparently swept several occupied homes off their foundations in the coastal communities of Na’alehu and Wai’ohinu, near the island’s southern tip, the Hawaii county mayor, Kimo Alameda, said early on Sunday.

The Hawaii department of transportation released a photograph on Sunday showing downed trees and power lines along Keaau-Pahoa Road (Route 130) near Pahoa, Hawaii, on Saturday. Photograph: Hawaii Department of Transportation/AFP/Getty Images

“You definitely want to be home, do not be out on the roads,” said Green, who had earlier described Lala as an “enormous storm”.

Tropical storm conditions were spreading westward on Sunday from Maui to Oahu and then Kauai, and the National Hurricane Center warned that wind speeds atop mountains and on the windward and leeward slopes are often up to 30% stronger than the near-surface winds used to categorize storms.

The possibility the island could witness its first direct hit from a hurricane in 155 years faded as the eye of the storm passed the island’s southern tip. Landfall was not expected at this point, said the National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Joseph Clark.

However, hurricane-force winds were expected to continue into the overnight hours, with the strongest wind gusts likely in areas of higher terrain, the National Hurricane Center said. Heavy rainfall into Sunday could produce flooding and mudslides, while powerful waves pound the coast, the agency said.

A photograph from Hawaii’s transportation department showed downed trees along Mamalahoa Highway (Route 11) on Hawaii’s Big Island on Saturday amid heavy rain and strong winds from Hurricane Lala. Photograph: Hawaii Department of Transportation/AFP/Getty Images

Tropical storm warnings remained in effect for the islands of Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, Kauai and Niihau as the storm moved west, raising the possibility of destructive flooding and even wildfires kicked up by strong winds.

The beloved Punalu’u Bake Shop in Naalehu, Big Island, a tourist hotspot and major local employer, was severely damaged. Zachary Kennedy, the manager of the Hawaiian sweet bread bakery, said water rushed through their factories and retail store, leaving behind about 3ft of mud.

“This is a different level of damage. It’s literally catastrophic,” Kennedy said.

Forecasters said higher elevations on the island, dominated by the towering Mauna Kea volcano, could get as much as 35in (89cm) of rain. That could cause life-threatening mudslides where some of Big Island’s 210,000 residents live off the grid in improvised housing.

A fallen tree blocked Young Street in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Sunday after Hurricane Lala weakened to a tropical storm but still caused damage and flooding throughout the islands. Photograph: Eugene Tanner/AFP/Getty Images

As the hurricane approached, shelters were opened, events were canceled and ranchers were urged to leave their cattle in pastures rather than structures that might collapse. Many residents are still dealing with the aftermath of devastating floods in March and were taking precautions.

Bobby Camara, a 75-year-old lifelong resident, said he planned to “hunker down, cross my fingers, [and] hope the lights don’t go out” at a care home just outside Hilo. He said gas stations were busy as people sought fuel for chainsaws and vehicles.

“I think stocking up is part of life over here,” Camara said. “You learn to be self-reliant.”

Mike Caputo, who lives in Keaau, near the Big Island’s east coast, said his power generator was ready and a 10,000-gallon (37.8 kiloliter) home water tank was full. He said the main concern was flash flooding and fallen trees, especially albizia, a common tree.

“They’re not very sturdy, but they grow extremely large,” said Caputo, 50, a local fire captain. “They can make roads impassable.”

Lala intensified from a tropical storm into a hurricane early Saturday as its maximum sustained winds increased to 75mph (120km/h), the hurricane center reported, making it a category 1 hurricane.

A hurricane last made landfall on the islands in 1992, when Hurricane Iniki – a category 4 storm – lashed Kauai.

The Big Island was last hit directly in 1871, when a category 3 hurricane hit the north-east corner, according to research by a University of Hawaii atmospheric scientist.

The hurricane center predicted 8-12in (20.3-30.5cm) of total rainfall across Maui and the lower elevations of the Big Island, and 4-6in (10.2-15.2cm) across the island chain.