All the factors in place for cold days, chilly nights

Advertiser Staff

If you're reading this with your morning coffee, chances are you're shivering.

Another chilly experience — but not record cold — was expected overnight, with the National Weather Service predicting temperatures from 55 degrees to 60 degrees throughout the state.

The record low in Honolulu for today is 54 degrees, which was set in 1978 and tied in 1996.

"It's all relative, though," said weather service forecaster Tim Craig. "If you were in Alaska, this would be a heat wave."

That wasn't good enough for North Shore surfing instructor Suzie Stewart, who didn't much care how cold it has been before.

"It's freezing up here right now," Stewart said yesterday afternoon. "It's so cold I'm sleeping in my sweats wearing a beanie and I'm dreaming that it's snowing on the North Shore."

That, according to Ocean Safety Lt. John Hoogsteden, was another reason to stay clear of the ocean. Hoogsteden said yesterday's 15- to 20-foot waves were unfit for surfing, swimming or shell hunting.

Surf today was expected to be about 12 feet to 18 feet on the North Shore.

"You don't want to get into the water at all when the ocean is this unpredictable," Hoogsteden said.

A high-pressure system that followed a cold front on Monday was settling over the Islands yesterday afternoon and last night, Craig said. Winds were expected to be light, the air dry and the sky clear — all the ingredients for a chilly night, he said.

Temperatures early Monday morning dipped into the 50s, but no records were set, Craig said. It was 59 degrees in Honolulu; 55 degrees in Lihu'e, Kaua'i; 56 degrees in Kahului, Maui; and 60 degrees in Hilo, Hawai'i.