honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, December 2, 2003

Lightning, more rain hit Islands

 •  Islands' 'regular winter storm' result of several factors

By Peter Boylan and Karen Blakeman
Advertiser Staff Writers

O'ahu and Maui residents weathered heavy downpours, rock slides, power failures and lightning strikes as the season's first thunderstorm intensified yesterday.

The state's first thunderstorm of the season dropped nearly 3 inches of rain on parts of O'ahu during a 12-hour period yesterday. Lightning was also reported.

Rick and Kendra Wicks from Agora, Calif., came to Hawai'i for a sunny holiday but instead had to wade through the flooded street near Kapi'olani Park.

Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

The rain caused two rock slides on Kalaniana'ole Highway on the Windward side last night.

According to Department of Transportation spokesman Scott Ishikawa, at about 7:30 p.m., eight boulders fell onto Kalaniana'ole Highway about 1,500 feet to the west of Sea Life Park. The biggest boulder measured 3 feet by 2 feet with the rest the size of coconuts and footballs, Ishikawa said.

The highway was shut down in both directions for almost two hours before being reopened at 9:10 p.m., Ishikawa said. It was later closed again but reopened at 11:30 p.m.

No boulders fell in the area protected by the netting put up by the state at Makapu'u this summer, Ishikawa said.

Fire Capt. Kenison Tejada said at about 7:30 p.m. a woman in her 20s driving a Volkswagen Passat hit one of the boulders.

The airbag in the woman's car deployed but she wasn't hurt.

The second slide happened about 9:45 p.m. between the Koko Head rifle range and Sandy Beach, Ishikawa said.

Engineers were to be on the scene this morning.

Drier conditions are forecast for O'ahu today, but there is a chance of heavy rains on Maui, Moloka'i and the Big Island as the storm system, which first hit Saturday, works its way down the island chain.

Firefighters responded to a handful of flooding calls at homes and businesses as parts of O'ahu got as much as 2.8 inches of rain in a 12-hour period ending at 5 p.m., the National Weather Service said.

Lightning strikes were reported in Windward O'ahu, the first about noon in Enchanted Lake in Kailua, the second almost an hour later in Ha'iku Plantation in Kane'ohe.

Tejada said lightning blew a 2-foot hole in the roof of a house on Hulupala Place in Kane'ohe. No one was hurt.

Corey Downs, a 24-year-old Kailua resident, said he was sitting in his house on Akumu Street when he looked out the window and saw a bolt of lightning strike a light pole. He and his friends went outside to have a look.

"Then I saw lightning strike another pole. It knocked lines loose and power went off pretty quickly," Downs said. Power was restored to the area in about an hour.

Tim McLemore, a 39-year-old Palolo resident, said he was driving down Pali Highway, looking out toward Kailua, when he saw lightning knife straight down into Enchanted Lake. "I thought I'd see a crater or something," McLemore said. "It's fortunate it's just the power (that was affected)."

Officials closed pools at five county parks — 'Aiea, Kalihi Valley, Manoa, McCully and Kailua — because of the threat of lightning.

Power failures were reported throughout the day in Wai'anae, Wahiawa, Mililani, Enchanted Lake and various neighborhoods in East Honolulu.

Makiki firefighters Dave Yoshida, left, and Reggie Gawiran remove a water-logged carpet from a house on Davenport Street that was flooded. Power outages were also reported in various areas throughout the day.

Residents on Akumu Street in Kailua say lightning struck this utility pole yesterday. Power was knocked out to the area for about an hour.

Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser

Margaret Penna, a cashier at Ace Hardware Hawaii in Kane'ohe, said she drove through rain-soaked roads on the way to work from Waimanalo, and worked for a few seconds in the dark yesterday when the electricity went out briefly.

Customers, she said, were buying tarps and submersible pumps.

"Their houses are flooding," Penna said. "Some are coming in for gutters and PVC pipe.

"And its still raining. Off and on."

Roads were wet and traffic moved at a slower rate than usual yesterday as motorists cautiously navigated streets and freeways. A spate of minor accidents occurred downtown, in Nu'uanu, near the airport and in Kane'ohe; no one was seriously hurt.

Ishikawa said a portion of the cliff behind the barriers near the Castle Junction interchange collapsed, but did not spill into the street. He said a few rocks fell onto Kamehameha Highway near Kipapa Gulch in Mililani.

"It was wet all over so we're asking drivers to kind of take it easy. Roads are slick, visibility is poor, and if you don't follow the speed limit you are going to have less time to react to what's in front of you," Ishikawa said. He said there were no reported airport delays.

On Maui, heavy rains caused flooding and road closures in low-lying coastal areas of Kihei.

County crews were busy all day unblocking coastal drainage outlets that caused flooding on South Kihei Road near Suda Store and at intersections that included Kulanihako'i and Welakahao streets.

Flooding also occurred on Auhana Road, at Wailea Alanui near the Wailea Golf Course, from Okolani Drive to Wailea Iki and on Pi'ilani Highway next to Maui Meadows, officials said.

Kalama Park was also flooded near the new pavilion, and all county pools were closed because of reports of lightning.

In Waikiki, many tourists were still trying to get the most out of their vacations, said James Clark, concierge at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

"Some lu'aus and things are canceling," he said. "But people are still asking how to get to Hanauma Bay. They're still getting in the water. And they're going out to Pearl Harbor."

Hilton restaurants and room service, however, were doing bustling business from hotel guests who decided it wasn't worth venturing out in the rain to get a meal, he said.

"And last night a few people came up and asked directions to the nearest movie theater," Clark said, "but I guess that isn't too unusual."

Paradise Cove Luau was closed Sunday and yesterday because of the rain, but the Polynesian Cultural Center and Germaine's "Too Good to Miss" Luaus remained open.

"We had 500-plus people out both nights of the weekend," said Paulette Watson, executive director of sales for Germaine's. "I was out there Saturday and it was actually a beautiful night out there. I live in 'Aiea, and it was raining so hard there you couldn't see."

The Leeward location usually helps to keep the lu'au dry, she said. When it does rain, the staff tries to keep people comfortable.

"We feed 'em first," Watson said, "because people with full stomachs don't get angry. And we have these Germaine's Luau ponchos. People wear them and put flowers on their heads over them and look like Mother Teresa."

Advertiser staff writers Mike Gordon and Timothy Hurley contributed to this report.

Reach Peter Boylan at 535-8110 or pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com. Reach Karen Blakeman at 535-2430 or kblakeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.