Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope
What comes to mind when you think of Hawaii? Probably tropical paradise. However, this year, a rare blizzard hit the island. The state ended up being hit with a lot of snow and cold weather, causing everyone to head inside!
Hawaii’s Terrible Blizzard
NWSWPC
Last Friday, something quite bizarre happened: the National Weather Service issued an “urgent” warning. The warning? A massive blizzard was coming straight for Hawaii. That’s right! When the alarm first went out, meteorologists predicted that at least 12 inches of snow would fall all around Hawaii’s Big Island, with wind gusts of up to 100 miles per hour. At the same time, the National Weather Service also warned against traveling around any of the islands, saying movement “could be very difficult to impossible…blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility at times, with periods of zero visibility.”
Still, while it might sound crazy, Hawaii does receive snow from time to time. “Although Hawaii has the reputation of year-round warmth, snow actually makes a yearly appearance atop some of its highest peaks,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Lauren Hyde. In the end, the storm ended up being quite bad and resulted in the Hawaiian governor, David Ige, signing an Emergency Declaration for all of the islands of Hawaii…
Kona Low Destroys Property
NWSWPC
The city of Honolulu received over 12 inches of rain during the storm, while the south- and southwest-facing mountainsides received a whopping 40! Afterward, the government issued flood warnings for all of the islands, while some places experienced terrifying rockfalls. As a result, the governor of Hawaii, David Ige, signed an Emergency Declaration for all of the islands of Hawaii as the storm started to wind down.
“I’ve just signed an emergency declaration for the entire State of Hawaii as heavy rains from a Kona Low weather system are anticipated to continue to cause flooding and damage to public and private property,” Governor Ige announced on Twitter. “The emergency declaration allows the state to use funds[sic] to support state and county efforts in providing quick and efficient relief of suffering, damage, and losses caused by flooding and other effects of heavy rains.” As of this writing, the Emergency Declaration is expected to run through December 10. However, with the devastating effects of the blizzard, there’s no guarantee it won’t be extended until next week.
If you would like to help the people of Hawaii, you can donate to organizations that help during disasters, like the Red Cross.
