weather

The aftermath of a disaster is a legal and financial minefield. Put important documents in your evacuation kit in case disaster strikes.

The recent Kona low weather system brought some much-needed rainfall to dry parts of the state, but Hawaiʻi and Maui counties remain in drought.

For the first time in more than 50 years, Honolulu didn’t get any measurable rainfall in the month of August. HPR’s Savannah Harriman-Pote looks at whether these parched summers are the new normal.

Karl Kim, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa professor of urban planning, heads the UH Pacific Urban Resilience Lab. He spoke to HPR's Catherine Cruz how past threats inform the future of natural disaster planning.

Forecasters say Hurricane Kiko has weakened into a tropical storm but still could create life-threatening surf and rip currents in Hawaiʻi. The storm is forecast to pass to the north of the Hawaiian Islands on Tuesday and Wednesday as it continues to weaken.

Two tropical cyclones in the eastern Pacific Ocean have gained strength. The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Lorena is expected to become a hurricane off Mexico's western coast. Meanwhile, Hurricane Kiko has intensified with winds above 100 mph as it travels west over open waters. Kiko is a Category 2 hurricane, but no watches or warnings are associated with it, and there are no hazards affecting land.

Hurricane Henriette was a Category 1 storm on Monday and was well away from Hawaiʻi. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph and was about 525 miles northwest of Honolulu.

Forecasters say Tropical Storm Gil has become a hurricane in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The U.S. National Hurricane Center reported Friday that the storm was about 1,080 miles west-southwest of Mexico's Baja California peninsula.

Emergency managers directed Oʻahu residents in "red zones" to head inland on Tuesday as the state faced a tsunami. But Oʻahu's evacuation maps also show yellow "Extreme Tsunami" zones. Did people in those areas need to evacuate as well?

A red flag warning has been extended for the leeward portions of all Hawaiian Islands and the interior sections of the Big Island until at least 6 p.m. Saturday.