Two months after Hurricane Lala brought catastrophic flooding to Hawaiʻi Island's Kaʻū District, federal aid is now on the way to help rebuild public infrastructure. On October 8, the President approved a major disaster declaration providing FEMA Public Assistance to the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaiʻi County and Maui County for emergency work and repairs to public facilities.
Record rain in Kaʻū
Lala struck Hawaiʻi in the United States as a Category 1 hurricane, with its eyewall passing near South Point on the Big Island around 4 p.m. HST on Saturday, August 15. The storm made no official landfall, but its eyewall rainbands produced extreme rainfall from the evening of August 15 through most of August 16. Gauges on the Big Island recorded up to about 43 inches of rain, and several locations on the southeast slopes in the Kaʻū District received more than 30 inches.
Towns cut off
The rain fell in a short time, sending massive flood waves through Nāʻālehu and Pāhala. Floodwaters swept homes off their foundations and destroyed bridges and roads, and Highway 11 was cut, isolating the towns. Hawaiʻi County Mayor Kimo Alameda counted six bridges destroyed or nearly destroyed. About 100 homes were damaged or washed away, and schools and the Nāʻālehu cemetery were damaged. The National Weather Service reported two direct deaths, both from flooding in Nāʻālehu, and one indirect death. Heavy rain also caused flooding and road closures on Oahu and Maui, and damaging winds left about 200,000 customers statewide without power, some for days or longer.
Relief on the ground
World Central Kitchen responded in Hilo and Nāʻālehu with local partner Vibrant Hawaiʻi, and the American Red Cross helped residents as cleanup began. Find more groups in our list of disaster relief organizations.
To support families rebuilding in Kaʻū, visit the Hurricane Lala disaster page and donate to the organizations responding.
