Photo: Ryan De Seixas//@hhhnewz
The storm that ripped through Hawaii over the weekend wreaked havoc on the islands, with Maui and Hawaii seeing the highest rain totals from a historic Kona Low. The storm was so significant that Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda says it brought on the worst flooding he’d ever seen.
“Last night was super heavy rains,” he told KHON2 on Monday. “I mean, the worst flooding I’ve seen, especially in the Kohala, Kona and Kau Districts. There were 18 rescues – rescues from cars or from the houses – and that was a big concern. So, we were up late last night.”
Parts of Maui received up to 44 inches for a five-day rainfall total and the highest total on Hawaii Island came in at over 25 inches, according to Hawaii New Now, Rainfall totals like that can wreak havoc. On Oahu’s North Shore, there was a sizable landslide at Waimea Bay. Drone footage above the slide made the rounds on social media Monday, showing boulders breaking off the bluffs mere feet from Kam Highway.
Another post on Monday showed the destruction up close, adding that a large boulder had been blocking one lane of Pupukea Road across from the heiau (temple).
By Wednesday, the collapsed bluff and parts of the beach surrounding the slide had been taped off. Hawaii News Now reported that some visitors weren’t taking the hint provided by caution tape, crossing boundaries and wandering too close to all the debris. Meanwhile, state crews are expected to be working in the area for the next two weeks.
“We’ve never seen the slopes below the roadways act like this before,” Ed Sniffen of Hawaii’s Department of Transportation told HHN. “We’re looking at how we stabilize (the roadway) in the short term,” adding that 50-60 foot long anchors will likely be installed to secure the section of road that has been impacted.
The entire North Shore is experiencing significant coastal erosion, of course, and Waimea Bay is one of the most extreme cases along the Seven Mile Miracle. One study reported that the shoreline had receded approximately 200 feet over a 47-year period between 1928 and 1974.
