The worst flooding to hit Hawaii in two decades has swept homes off their foundations, floated cars out of driveways and left floors, walls and counters covered in thick, reddish volcanic mud.
Authorities said hundreds of homes had been damaged, along with some schools and a hospital. On Monday, new downpours set off a fresh round of flooding on Oahu’s south side while residents on the island’s North Shore cleaned up and assessed the destruction from last week’s torrents. The National Weather Service said showers and thunderstorms were expected to wane but the Big Island remained under a flash flood watch.
On Oahu, residents started to tally the damages, and began the intensive process of clearing the thick layer of mud covering many homes and streets.
Michael McEwan and his wife Heather Nakahara returned to their home in Waialua on Oahu’s North Shore over the weekend to find their kitchen counters covered in red silt. Piled-up furniture blocked a hallway, and a folding table they don’t own was lodged under a heavy sleeper sofa. There were two other mystery tables in their backyard.
The rushing water trapped the couple in a bedroom closet for eight hours with their two small terriers and three parrots until daybreak on Friday when McEwan was able to flag down firefighters driving down their road. The rescuers tied a rope to a tree next to their bedroom, which guided them through a narrow channel of flowing water.
They will probablyhave permanent reminders of the flooding in their house because of the red volcanic mud permeating everything.
“It’s full of iron, so it stains everything brownish-yellow,” McEwan said.
Farms around the state reported more than $9.4m worth of damage as of Monday, according to a survey conducted by Agriculture Stewardship Hawaii, the Hawaii Farm Bureau and other organizations. Oahu farmers reported more than $2.7m in crop damage. Few farmers have federal crop insurance or any insurance at all, Honolulu Civic beat reported.
The Hawaii governor, Josh Green, said the cost of the storm could top $1bn, though that number is expected to rise. State leaders said they were seeking federal assistance to help pay for the recovery. Green called the storm the state’s most serious since flooding since 2004, when floods in Manoa inundated homes and a University of Hawaii library.
Green on Sunday recommended that those wanting to support affected households donate to the Hawaii Community Foundation, which has activated its Stronger Hawaii Fund. The non-profit Hawaiian Council launched the Kako’o Oahu initiative for help with housing and other needs.
Officials blamed some of the devastation on the large volumes of rain that fell in a short amount of time. Parts of Oahu received 8 to 12in (20 to 30cm), the National Weather Service said. That was on top of another recent storm that had dumped vast amounts days earlier. Kaala, the island’s highest peak, got nearly 16in (40cm) late last week, on top of 26.6in between 10 and 16 March.
Winter storm systems known as “Kona lows”, which feature southerly or south-westerly winds that bring in moisture-laden air, have been responsible for the deluges in the past two weeks. The intensity and frequency of heavy rains in Hawaii have increased amid human-caused global warming, experts say.
