Hurricane Jimena likely to pass south of Hawai'i

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hurricane Jimena continues to head toward the Islands, but forecasters last night said the storm is expected to miss Hawai'i and pass south of the Big Island on Labor Day.

As of 11 p.m. yesterday, Jimena was 975 miles east southeast of Hilo and moving at about 18 mph in a west-northwest direction, the National Weather Service said. Jimena had winds of 100 mph with gusts up to 120 mph.

If Jimena holds its current path, the storm would pass 70 miles south of South Point on the Big Island early Monday as a minimal hurricane, lead forecaster Tim Craig said. Jimena was expected to enter the Central Pacific overnight, which means forecast responsibilities would be turned over to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center here.

Craig emphasized that Jimena is still far from the Islands and things could change in the next few days. But a subtropical ridge building north of the Islands was forecast to push the storm south of the Big Island. The forecast was for Jimena to weaken during the weekend.

"It's still a faraway system, and it has to move 1,100 miles over the next several days. Although we are relatively certain that it is going to pass south of Hawai'i, at this point in time it's way too early to tell you exactly how far south," Craig said. "So right now, all that we're saying is that it is forecast to be a hurricane passing south of the Islands Labor Day and people should stay abreast of the latest forecast."

The last hurricane to hit Hawai'i was Iniki in 1992, but Craig said there's no comparison and everything about this storm is different.

Iniki, which ravaged Kaua'i, was classified as a Category 4 hurricane, meaning there were sustained winds of 131 mph to 155 mph. The forecast for the Big Island on Labor Day calls for scattered showers with gusty trade winds of 15 mph to 30 mph.

The hurricane also may increase surf heights along the east and southeast shores. The weather service said surf may reach the advisory level of 8 feet tonight or the warning level of 15 feet tomorrow, depending on the strength and position of Jimena.

The forecast for the Big Island calls for showers and possibly thunderstorms tomorrow, with winds from 20 to 40 mph with higher gusts.

Word of the approaching hurricane apparently has not led to a rush at local stores to buy supplies.

At the Hilo Wal-Mart, store manager Boyd Schneider said sales have been normal. "What I'm seeing most is the stuff that people are picking up for the Labor Day weekend — barbecues, snacks, different items," Schneider said. "We've noticed things like rice and water will be the ones they pick up if something is said about a hurricane or anything like that."

Costco Waipi'o manager Mike Hayes said he noticed the same shopping trends at his store yesterday. "There's some talk (about the hurricane), but not very much ... we haven't really noticed a large degree of shopping, anything over what we projected for our Labor Day business," Hayes said.

Reach Curtis Lum at 525-8025 or culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.