Hawaii Keeps Close Eye on Hurricane Ignacio

By Jordan Root, Meteorologist

August 26,2015; 10:46PM,EDT

 

 

The tropics have been quite active around Hawaii as of late, and the pattern is not expected to change anytime soon with Hurricane Ignacio churning in the eastern Pacific.
Ignacio has been strengthening since forming Tuesday afternoon and is becoming better organized, stated AccuWeather Meteorologist Dave Samuhel.
The combination of low wind shear and warm waters allowed Ignacio to become a hurricane on Wednesday evening.

"Ignacio is currently more than 1,400 miles from Hawaii and is moving rather slowly, so it will not be a threat to Hawaii for some time," Samuhel said. The main danger Ignacio poses in the near-term is rough seas for those with shipping interests.
"Regardless [of its distance], Hawaii residents should keep an eye on Ignacio through the weekend," added Samuhel.
"The initial thinking is that Ignacio will pass just east of the Big Island Monday night, local time," stated AccuWeather Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski. "The large area of high pressure to the north could help guide it close to the other islands Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, but it will be weakening by that time due to passing over slightly cooler waters."
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Kottlowski quickly stressed that the above track is not etched in stone, and residents should not let their guard down for a potentially more impactful scenario to unfold.
The AccuWeather Hurricane Center will continue to provide updates over the next several days.
While Ignacio spins in the eastern Pacific, drier air will gradually work in later this week to replace the tropical air mass and downpours that have been targeting Hawaii since the weekend.
Satellite view of Tropical Storm Ignacio in the eastern Pacific. (Satellite/NOAA)
Honolulu recorded 3.60 inches of rain Monday, more than six times the normal monthly amount. This heavy rain has been causing many issues from flooding and washed-out roadways to sewer overflows.
According to a press release from the City and County of Honolulu, several sanitary sewer overflows occurred due to heavy rain, forcing beach closures and a Brown Water Advisory to be issued.
A light trade wind shower pattern will resume by this weekend but may quickly once again become disrupted as Ignacio approaches.
Rainfall amounts for the month of August have been well above normal across Hawaii. This is largely brought on by an increase in tropical activity from an influence of El Niño.
Hawaii Rainfall Aug. 1-25

City	Observed Amount (inches)	Normal Amount for August (inches)
Hilo	16.88	9.85
Wheeler AFB	10.15	3.87
Lihue	7.41	2.13
Honolulu	5.59	0.56
Kalaeloa	3.22	0.65

"During El Niño, it is not uncommon for there to be a higher-than-normal number of tropical systems in the central Pacific due to the warmer waters of the Pacific Ocean," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski.
With the El Niño expected to strengthen into fall, the risk for additional tropical activity will continue over the next several weeks. This means the risk for additional flooding rainfall but also rainfall that would help the drought.
As of last Thursday, the U.S. Drought Monitor reported nearly 30 percent of Hawaii was in the grips of a drought. Rainfall from tropical systems would help alleviate drought conditions across the state.