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Heavy rain from the second Kona low storm in about a week landed on already saturated ground Friday, flooding North Shore Oʻahu homes and prompting evacuation orders as officials eyed rising water at a Central Oʻahu dam.
“It's hard to say exactly what the damage is, because some of the roads have been impassable, but at the very least, dozens, if not maybe hundreds of homes, people being displaced,” Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said at a Friday afternoon news conference. “We're in this. We're far from out of it.”
Honolulu Department of Emergency Management officials issued an evacuation order for Waialua and Haleʻiwa due to water levels at the Wahiawā Dam. Officials warned that life-threatening flooding and catastrophic amounts of fast-moving water in downstream areas were possible if the dam overflowed. Residents in downstream areas were urged to evacuate. Click here to view an interactive map.
Shelters and assembly areas opened at Leilehua High, Mililani District Park, Wahiawā District Park, The Salvation Army Kroc Center Hawaii near ʻEwa Beach, and Nānākuli High. Waialua High and Kahuku Elementary are no longer evacuation shelters. Pets need to be on a leash or in a carrier.
Last weekend, during a prior storm, Gov. Josh Green said, "When that dam water gets past 83 feet, we start getting concerned. At 85 feet, we tend to evacuate, and at 88 to 90 feet, it becomes a deep concern."
Monitoring data for the Wahiawā Reservoir showed the water level at 85 feet around 9 a.m. Friday. Around 4:30 p.m., the water level appeared to be dropping under 82.5 feet.
On Maui
Evacuation advisories previously issued for ʻĪao Valley and parts of Kīhei were upgraded to warnings due to potential flooding. An evacuation warning is not the same thing as an evacuation order.
The Maui Emergency Management Agency said a warning indicates a potential threat to life and/or property, and those who require additional time to evacuate may consider leaving early. Shelters are open or scheduled to open Friday evening across Maui.
Other vulnerable areas around Maui Nui were under evacuation advisories on Friday, including spots in East Molokaʻi, Lahaina and East Maui.
History of Central Oʻahu's Wahiawā Dam
The earthen dam was built in 1906 to increase sugar production for the Waialua Agricultural Company, which eventually became a subsidiary of Dole Food Company. It was reconstructed following a collapse in 1921, The Associated Press reports.
The state has sent Dole four notices of deficiency about the dam since 2009, and five years ago, fined the company $20,000 for failing to address safety deficiencies on time, according to records.
Afterward, Dole proposed to donate the dam, reservoir and ditch system to the state in exchange for the state’s agreement to repair the spillway to meet and maintain dam safety standards.
The state passed legislation in 2023 authorizing the dam’s acquisition. It also provided $5 million to buy the spillway and $21 million to repair and expand it to comply with dam safety requirements. But the transfer has not been completed. A state board is due to vote on the acquisition next week.
The state regulates 132 dams across Hawaiʻi, most of them built as part of irrigation systems for the sugar cane industry, according to a 2019 infrastructure report by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Additional areas of heavy rain were expected throughout Friday, which could exacerbate existing flooding. The entire island of Oʻahu was under a flash flood warning until at least Friday evening. Other areas of the state were also under a lower-level flood watch through Sunday afternoon.
City officials said that emergency personnel were sent primarily to the Oʻahu North Shore for flood rescues, both on land and nearshore. Green said the Hawaiʻi National Guard has been activated since early Friday morning.
Hawaiʻi public schools and many private schools are on spring break.
The National Guard and Honolulu Fire Department airlifted 72 children and adults who had been attending a spring break youth camp at a retreat on Oʻahu’s west coast called Our Lady of Kea’au, according to city and camp officials. The camp is on high ground, but authorities didn’t want to leave them there, the mayor said. Kimberly R.Y. Vierra, a spokesperson for St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawai‘i, which owns the retreat property, said floodwaters had cut off the entrance road to the camp.
Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi Island and Maui Nui residents can track Hawaiian Electric power outages here. Kauaʻi residents can track KIUC outages here.
On Friday morning, Hawaiian Electric said it turned off power to about 1,300 customers in the Waialua area on Oʻahu, at the request of fire officials amid flooding. HECO said it also de-energized areas throughout the North Shore, affecting over 4,000 customers.
The Hawaiʻi Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Insurance Division reminds residents to review their insurance policies and to file claims quickly. Starting claims promptly helps ensure coverage is applied correctly and delays are avoided. A post-disaster claims guide and a video on how to file an insurance claim offer additional help.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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