Though the storm was not predicted to make landfall on any Hawaiian island, the Big Island and Maui County remained under tropical storm warnings because of threats from wind and rain.
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The U.S. Coast Guard re-opened ports, and schools on the Big Island were set to re-open Friday.
The storm was around 175 miles south of the island, Hilo, as of 0600 GMT on Thursday, churning maximum sustained winds of 65 miles an hour as it moved southwest at 15 miles per hour, the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC) said.
Those along the affected coasts and inland areas of northwest Florida and south Georgia should also brace for strong winds and heavy rain of 5 to 10 inches – and as much as 20 inches in isolated areas.
A Hurricane Watch remains in effect for Hawaii County as Lester has weakened somewhat but remains a major hurricane.
Blue skies over Hilo were a welcome sight after Wednesday’s nonstop rainfall and gusty winds that clocked up to 50 miles per hour in some areas.
The latest satellite images “show that Lester is a strong and well-organized hurricane lacking banding features, with a ring of strong convection completely encircling the well-defined eye”, the National Weather Service reported at 11 p.m. Tropical storm-force winds extend up to 105 miles from the Madeline’s center.
A Hurricane Watch has been issued for Hawaii County and for Maui County, including the islands of Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Kahoolawe.
A note of caution, despite the consistent track forecast showing Lester passing just northeast of the islands, it must be pointed out that there are plausible solutions within the margin of error that show direct impacts to the main Hawaiian Islands. Lester is a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
The storm peaked at a risky Category Four hurricane strength east of Hawaii on Tuesday.
“We went through this last year, we had three coming at us, and this year again”, said Virginia Branco, interim manager of the Mokupapapa Discovery Center in Hilo.
With one storm barreling toward the island state after another, some Hawaii residents said they’re developing a special skill at preparing for storms, in a cycle of boarding up windows and then taking the protections down, again and again. “I think we really dodged a bullet because the house was not damaged externally”, said Waiope resident Ramon Goya.
On Oahu, gusty winds blew through Wednesday night with power lost in some Honolulu neighborhoods.
The storm didn’t keep President Obama from visiting Honolulu Thursday on his way to Midway Atoll.
Forecasters say the system is still too far away to know its exact path or potential impacts and urge the public not to focus too closely on the forecast track, but rather be prepared and vigilant to updated forecasts.
The warning covers an area that extends from Marineland, Florida, northward to the South Santee River in SC.
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Hawaii Gov. David Ige declared a state of emergency Tuesday ahead of Madeline.
