A flash flood watch was extended through this afternoon as the rainstorms predicted this week materialized on the Big Island and Maui yesterday.

Parts of those islands were hit with 3 to 4 inches of rain per hour yesterday afternoon.

The area of heavy rain was moving north at 15 mph, and while a band of showers passed across west O'ahu and lightning flashed in the sky, much of the island remained dry though late last night.

A low-pressure system west of the state was continuing to move west-southwest, forecasters said. It was making the atmosphere unstable and creating conditions where heavy showers were possible.

A rain gauge at 'Ohe'o Gulch in East Maui recorded 5.49 inches of rain in the six-hour period ending at 8 p.m. yesterday. Four rain gauges in East Hawai'i recorded between 1.07 and 1.90 inches in that period.