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Standing on a hotel balcony overlooking Waikiki Beach on a perfect day it’s hard to believe there’s an enormous Category 5 hurricane out there beyond the horizon, writes Peter Needham from Honolulu – but Hurricane Lane is coming closer and fears are growing it may become the first hurricane to hit Hawaii in 26 years. 

A hurricane warning is now in place. Airlines and tourism operators are eyeing the relentless approach of Hurricane Lane with concern. It is expected to hit – or near miss – in a couple of days. Hawaii very seldom cops a direct hit from a hurricane – but it happens. The last hurricane to make landfall in Hawaii was Iniki, which hit Kauai in 1992.

Lane was upgraded last night to the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, Category 5, as it moves across the Pacific Ocean toward Hawaii’s highly volcanic Big Island.

At the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort  & Spa, where I’m staying, guests were officially advised last night that Hurricane Lane “continues on a path towards the State of Hawaii”.

A letter signed by Donald Kim, director of rooms, and placed on all guestroom doors advised: “Hurricane conditions include high surf and surge along all coastal areas; heavy rains and thunder showers that may cause flood conditions; and sustained storm force winds and gusts.”

The letter said the storm was expected on Friday, “however, as these weather systems are unpredictable, we will provide additional updates each day as conditions change. Currently all resort operations will remain open for normal hours and service.”

The US National Weather Service Honolulu & Central Pacific Hurricane Center warned: “Lane is officially a dangerous category 5 storm with maximum sustained winds of 160mph [257kph]. Lane is only one of two category 5 hurricanes to pass within 350 miles [560km] of the state according to database records. The last was Hurricane John in 1994.”

Hawaii Governor David Ige has signed an emergency proclamation to ease the way for the state to lend support to local emergency responders.

Official advice is: “Make sure you are prepared for Hurricane Lane and other natural disasters, with a family emergency plan and an emergency kit (with enough food, water, medication, and other essentials to last at least 14 days).”

Time to move the deck chairs? Tourists on Waikiki Beach yesterday. Photo by Peter Needham

 

The thousands of tourists visiting Hawaii can hardly arrange that. They are concerned about their flights.

Michael Lowry, a strategic planner at the US Federal Emergency Management Agency and a tropical weather expert, tweeted yesterday: “This isn’t Florida. The landscape and infrastructure are different. Take this one seriously.”

American news and information website Axios reported. “If the storm were to make a significant impact on the island of Oahu, in particular, it could cause flooding at Honolulu International Airport, the oil refinery at Barbers Point, and several large military installations, including Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.”

Written by Peter Needham in Honolulu