Hurricane Lowell knocked out power to 90 per cent of Kauai and killed a man on Oahu

Hurricane Lowell passed just west of Niʻihau late on September 7, its core close enough to strip power from most of neighbouring Kauaʻi within hours. By the next morning, roughly nine in ten Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative customers had no electricity, roads across the island were blocked by fallen trees and utility poles, and Hawaiʻi’s governor had confirmed the storm’s first fatality, a man killed when a tree came down on his tent on Oʻahu. The storm has since weakened to a tropical storm and is pulling away to the north, but recovery crews on Kauaʻi are still working through a damage list that will take days to clear.

A storm that stalled within reach of Niʻihau

At 11 p.m. HST on September 7, the National Hurricane Center placed Lowell’s centre about 145 kilometres (90 miles) west of Līhuʻe, with maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h (110 mph) and a minimum central pressure of 963 hPa. The hurricane was moving north-northeast at 30 km/h (18 mph), close enough that its core passed near Niʻihau even without making a direct landfall. Barking Sands and Līhuʻe Airport had already logged hurricane-force gusts before the centre’s closest approach, and the National Weather Service’s preliminary reports put the strongest gust at roughly 150 km/h (92 mph) at Puʻu Lua, with Nāwiliwili recording about 140 km/h (87 mph) and Waimea near 135 km/h (85 mph).

Kauaʻi’s grid buckles under downed poles and lines

The Hawaiʻi Joint Information Center reported widespread damage to Kauaʻi’s electrical system, including downed trees, utility poles and power lines across the island. Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative said around 90 per cent of its members lost service early on September 8, with utility tracker figures putting the number at more than 33,000 of the cooperative’s roughly 36,000 accounts. Restoration has been gradual rather than sudden: crews had inspected and begun repairing roughly 1,500 miles of line, two hospitals were re-energised within the first two days, and by midweek utility officials said close to a quarter of members were back on the grid as transmission repairs continued. Full service in the hardest-hit areas is expected to take considerably longer.

A homeless man’s death on Oʻahu

Kauaʻi absorbed the worst of the wind and rain, but the storm’s lone confirmed death happened on Oʻahu. Honolulu police responded at about 8:35 p.m. HST on September 7 to Sherwood Beach in Waimānalo, where a large tree trunk had fallen on a tent, killing the man sleeping inside. Governor Josh Green said the man was homeless and described the incident as part of the toll of “a very serious storm.” The case was classified as an unattended death. Separately, Kauaʻi County officials said a 74-year-old Kalaheo man found along the shoreline near Nomilu Fishpond appeared to have died in a manner related to the storm surge, a second fatality under investigation on the island that bore the brunt of Lowell’s winds.

Rainfall totals and the damage to roads and harbours

Over the 72 hours ending at 1 p.m. HST on September 8, the weather service recorded 536.2 millimetres (21.11 inches) of rain at Kilohana, 473.2 millimetres (18.63 inches) at Mount Waiʻaleʻale and 449.6 millimetres (17.70 inches) at Mohihi Crossing, with Hanaleʻi receiving 260.1 millimetres (10.24 inches). The Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation closed sections of Route 50 near Kalāheo and Route 560 near Hanaleʻi, where downed poles, trees and a landslide blocked the road, and reported many traffic signals across the island were out. The Department of Land and Natural Resources documented severe damage at Port Allen Small-Boat Harbor, including destroyed piers, several sunken vessels and a damaged access road, while Nāwiliwili Small-Boat Harbor lost power and Waimea State Recreational Pier was badly damaged. Port Allen remained closed to commercial traffic under a Coast Guard heavy-weather port condition, while Nāwiliwili reopened by late afternoon on September 8.

Schools and airports begin a slow reopening

Līhuʻe Airport reopened at 11:15 a.m. HST on September 8 with no significant structural damage, though officials warned that staffing shortages could still limit operations. Public schools on Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, along with Kauaʻi Community College and county offices, stayed closed through the rest of the week while crews assessed buildings and restored power; preliminary damage was reported at Kauaʻi High School, Kekaha Elementary School and Kanuikapono Public Charter School, where a main utility pole and several roofs were damaged. The Hawaiʻi Emergency Management Agency lifted its hurricane warning for Kauaʻi and Niʻihau and its tropical storm warning for Oʻahu by the morning of September 8, and asked residents to stay off the roads so repair crews could work without interference from traffic around downed lines.

Lowell weakens and pulls away to the north

By 11 p.m. HST on September 8, Lowell had weakened to a tropical storm centred about 625 kilometres (390 miles) north-northwest of Līhuʻe, with maximum sustained winds down to 100 km/h (65 mph) and a central pressure of 981 hPa, moving north at 22 km/h (14 mph). Forecasters expected the storm to curve toward the northwest and then west over the following days while continuing to weaken, with no coastal watches or warnings in effect anywhere in the islands. The Hawaiʻi Emergency Management Agency said lingering swells could still produce dangerous surf and rip currents along exposed coastlines even after the wind threat faded, a reminder that the ocean hazard from Lowell was expected to outlast the storm itself by at least another day.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.

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