Lala's recent close encounter with Hawaii continues to cause trouble Monday
While the worst of Lala's winds and rain have passed, damaged infrastructure from the storm may linger for days as high water has eroded roads, saturated soil remains and power may be out for days in some areas.
A bridge in Hilo, Hawaii, was overtaken by raging floodwaters during relentless rainfall from Hurricane Lala on Aug. 15.
In the wake of Lala, damage from torrential rain, strong winds and rough surf will be assessed in the coming days. However, dangers will continue in the short term due to high water, soil erosion, mudslides and toppled trees.
One person has died, and others have been injured in an automobile accident on Saturday related to Lala on the Big Island, multiple sources say.
"Lala, which dipped to tropical storm wind intensity early on Sunday, is expected to continue moving toward the west to northwest over the next couple of days, with fluctuations in strength and wobbles with its track," AccuWeather Lead Hurricane Expert Alex DaSilva said.
As it pulls away from the islands and the mountainous terrain, it is forecast to become a hurricane again.
Conditions in Honolulu will continue to improve into early Monday morning. There are only a few lingering bands of heavy rain over the island, which could lead to new flooding and travel disruptions.
On the AccuWeather RealImpact™Scale for Hurricanes, Lala remains a 2.
Lala's impacts so far
On Saturday, Lala strengthened to a hurricane with the 3 p.m. ET advisory, 9 a.m. Hawaii time. But even though the eye of the storm passed a mere 30 miles off the rocky southern tip of Ka Lae on the Big Island during Saturday night, it still managed to bring 15-30 inches of rain to the Big Island, while strong winds cut power and monstrous waves reached the shoreline as pounding breakers.
A view of the rising water levels at the Wainaku Street Bridge in Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Taylor Cozloff/Civil Beat via AP)
As of Sunday morning, wind gusts as high as 140 mph have been observed at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island, where heavy snow and blizzard conditions were recorded. Intermediate elevation gusts of up to 91 mph have been observed at Waimea on the Big Island and near 80 mph on Moloka'i.
Lala knocked out power to more than 25% of utility customers statewide, with 65% without power on the Big Island. As of Sunday night, around 46% of customers remain without power across the Big Island. Power outages will gradually be restored across the islands into Monday as strong gusts become less frequent and crews ramp up repair operations as conditions permit.
What to expect in Hawaii as Lala continues westward
As of Sunday night, local time, Lala was southwest of Kauai. The strongest winds and heaviest rain have ended, but gusty winds and heavy downpours will continue through early Monday morning on Oahu and Kauai. While the rain has ended for the islands east of Oahu, areas of flooding, mudslides and other debris flows will continue.
The maximum observed rainfall in Hawaii was 43.54 inches in Laupahoehoe on the Big Island.
Motorists should also avoid roads along hillsides as the soil is saturated and may give way, or falling debris could occur with little to no notice through at least Monday. Similarly, the waterlogged trunks and limbs and saturated soil could lead to more trees coming down with no warning. Some roads will remain closed until inspected or repaired.
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Seas will slowly diminish throughout the islands into the middle of the week. The conditions will be dangerous for small craft with the risk of sneaker waves on swells from the southwest and the west, given Lala's position.
Swimmers should be aware that the beach bottom beneath the waves has been disturbed and could be strewn with debris that could cause injury.
Looking ahead, AccuWeather meteorologists are monitoring a broad area of showers and thunderstorms hundreds of miles to the southeast of Hawaii that has a medium chance of development later this week.
AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes
In contrast to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which classifies storms by wind speed only, the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes is based on a broad range of important factors. In order to better communicate a more comprehensive representation of the potential impact of a storm on lives and livelihoods, the scale covers not only wind speed but also flooding rain, storm surge and economic damage and loss.
How rare are tropical storms and hurricanes in Hawaii?
Landfalling storms are rare for the Big Island.
Lala is not expected to turn northward, strike the western part of the island and significantly strengthen as Major Hurricane Iniki did in September 1992. Iniki's winds peaked at 145 mph before striking Kauai from the south. Iniki took the lives of seven people and was the costliest hurricane in Hawaii's history, with damage reaching $3.1 billion in 1992. A northward turn is forecast, but not until the storm is well west of the islands.
"Tropical Storms Darby in 2016 and Iselle in 2014 remain the only tropical storms to ever make landfall on Hawaii's Big Island," AccuWeather Meteorologist Jesse Ferrell said. "A hurricane has never made landfall on the Big Island."
“One storm that closely resembles Lala was Hurricane Hone in late August of 2024. Hone passed about 50 miles south of the Big Island as a Category 1 hurricane,” explained AccuWeather Lead Hurricane Expert Alex DaSilva. “Despite never making landfall in Hawaii, Hone brought more than 2 feet of rain to portions of the Big Island, causing significant flooding, as well as winds in excess of 70 mph.”
Lala is but part of an active eastern Pacific hurricane season as El Niño continues to strengthen. Additional threats to Hawaii are possible as the season progresses.
As of Aug. 16, eight named storms and three hurricanes had formed, including Category 5 Hurricane Genevieve. Fausto had been the only named storm this season to travel as far west as Hawaii’s longitude, passing well north of the islands in late July.
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