Iselle and Julio

[8/10/14] Julio moves north

[8/9/14] The one-two hurricane punch that was supposed to hit Hawaii is looking more like a jab and a missed left hook.

After Hawaii cleared Tropical Storm Iselle largely without deterring sunbathers and surfers, the state looked toward Hurricane Julio, which was expected to pass roughly 160 miles northeast of the islands at its closest point early Sunday.

While prospects for Julio could quickly change, the storms appear to have been more a scare for Hawaii than a significant threat.

[8/8/14] At the same time Iselle is wreaking havoc on the Hawaiian Islands, Hurricane Julio continues to churn in its wake, offering a real threat to deliver a rare double whammy of destruction on the state.

Julio strengthened to a Category 3 hurricane Thursday with 115 mph winds and traveling westerly at 16 mph more than 1,000 miles to the east of Hawaii.

It's moving in roughly the same path as Iselle, although the projected track would take it just north of the islands and arriving near Hawaii island Sunday and the rest of the chain Monday.

[8/8/14] HILO » The power supply and the geothermal plant in Puna proved to be among the first casualties of Iselle as it bore down on the Big Island Thursday night.

More than 18,000 people were without power, a Hawai‘i Electric Light Co. spokeswoman said.

After spending nearly all day as a Category 1 hurricane, Iselle weakened into a tropical storm, packing 70 mph winds, by 11 p.m., when its center was about 50 miles south of Hilo, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center.

No injuries were reported, but Iselle knocked out power, forced roads to close and sent more than 800 people and pets into evacuation centers to ride out the first hurricane to touch island shores since Iniki devastated Kauai in 1992.

Iselle, a Category 1 hurricane, triggered heavy rain, thundershowers, winds and high surf that forced repair crews to head out into the night Thursday to restore power from Puna through Hilo.

"So much wind, so much rain," Mayor Billy Kenoi said Thursday night at the Hawaii County Civil Defense headquarters in Hilo.

[8/7/14] After Hurricane Iselle surprised forecasters Wednesday by gaining strength, it may now become the first hurricane to make landfall in Hawaii since Iniki 22 years ago.

The storm was on a course to slam into Hawaii island Thursday and unleash sustained winds of 60 to 70 mph with gusts to 95 mph, forecasters said.

But projections show the storm should weaken as it moves west and south of Maui County Thursday night and Oahu and Kauai on Friday, packing 35- to 45-plus mph winds with locally higher gusts.

"The volcanoes of the Big Island will do a number on the system," said Mike Cantin, National Weather Service meteorologist. "So what it looks like on the other side — that's something we will be looking at closely."

All of the islands, he said, should prepare for 5 to 8 inches of rain and up to a foot of rain in some locations, especially in windward areas, with flash flooding a possibility.

"People need to understand this is a large system and the impacts will reach far from the center," he said.

Making matters worse, another storm, Julio, grew into a Category 1 hurricane late Tuesday and is following in the wake of Iselle a couple of days to the rear. But forecasters expect it to weaken and become a tropical storm when it nears Hawaii Sunday or later.