Hurricane Madeline has grown to a risky “Category Four” storm as it heads toward Hawaii, US weather officials said on Tuesday – furthermore warns of flash floods and mudslides from the hurricane’s lashing winds and rain.
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A Tropical Storm Warning is posted for the island of Hawaii. Madeline had become a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale.
A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected within the warning area.
Hurricane Madeline and Lester are expected to dump heavy rain on Hawaii, kick up the surf and create gusty winds in the coming days.
Madeline remained a category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour.
The category one hurricane has maximum sustained winds of 85 miles (140 kilometers) per hour, and was moving toward the northwest at about 10 miles per hour.
Preparing for what could be the first hurricane to make landfall in Hawaii in years, residents on the Big Island are stocking up on food and water and seeking shelter for their animals.
Winds of 110 miles per hour can damage well-built framed houses, remove roof decking, snap trees and cause blackouts, Lau said, adding, “We don’t want people to take it lightly”.
Madeline’s movement was forecast to turn west-southwest Tuesday night through early Thursday. However, Lester is predicted to weaken before it reaches the islands like Hurricane Darby did.
“Whether it’s a tropical storm or a hurricane, any of those systems can do damage”, said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Lau. Lester is expected to be a tropical storm by the time it passes the state.
Trailing Madeline by about 1,000 miles east is Hurricane Lester, which is now on a westerly path at 12 mph, just past Clarion Island, and also headed in Hawaii’s general direction.
NOAA issued a statement saying that Madeline will hit the Islands on Wednesday Aug. 31, it is estimated that Lester will hit the islands the following Saturday.
Big Island resident Mitzi Bettencourt says she has boarded up windows in her brother’s oceanfront home. The forecast calls for the weather system to drift towards the north and west through Tuesday and Wednesday while gaining strength and becoming a tropical storm in the process.
A video taken from the International Space Station on Tuesday captured all three systems, as seen from orbit.
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Moderate trade winds are forecast to continue through Tuesday with an increase in moisture. Lester, however, is moving steadily west and could arrive just in time for Labor Day weekend, Wroe said. While it is now ranked as more severe than Madeline, it is expected to lose strength by the time it gets to land.
