A new report revealed that the powerful March storms that drenched Hawaii produced more than 2 trillion gallons of rain and pushed precipitation levels to as much as 3,000% above normal in a 14-day period for this time of year.
The back-to-back kona low storms produced a “rain bomb” with enough rainfall to fill “3 million Olympic-sized swimming pools,” a Tuesday report from the University of Hawaii said.
The first storm system started on March 10, with “hurricane” wind speeds up to 135.4 mph on the island of Hawaii, the report says. During this system, which lasted until March 16, brought the most rainfall to Maui, with up to 62 inches.
The second storm spanned from March 19 to March 23, bringing up to 61 inches of rain to the islands and devastating flooding to Molokai, West Maui and Oahu.
Flash floods hit several islands, according to the National Service, including Oahu, the Big Island and Maui. The weather service reported water levels at least 2 feet high in the parking lot of Manoa Marketplace in Honolulu and a home that was swept onto the beach in the city of Waialua, for example.
As the storms subsided, a fierce atmospheric river hit Manoa and Palolo valleys on March 23, resulting in 2 to 4 inches of rain per hour.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said the storms’ damage could cost more than $1 billion and it was the most severe flooding the state has seen since 2004, the Associated Press reported.