The National Weather Service in Honolulu issued a flash-flood warning for the entire island of Kauai on Saturday, October 31, citing heavy rain and a rapid rise at a Hanalei River gauge upstream of town.
The warning was issued at 11:45 a.m. Hawaii Standard Time and runs until 2:45 p.m. HST. Forecasters said flooding was underway or expected to begin shortly, particularly near the Hanalei Bridge on Kuhio Highway.
Radar and automated gauges indicated rain falling at rates of one to three inches an hour over the eastern slopes of Mount Waialeale. Additional heavy rain was moving toward the island’s leeward side, according to the bulletin.
The warning identifies the whole island as potentially affected. Its description includes small streams, urban areas, highways, underpasses and other low-lying or poorly drained places where runoff can collect quickly.
The rainfall rates and river response are observations reported by the weather service at the time of issuance. The bulletin does not establish that every community on Kauai is flooded or that every road is closed.
The NWS urges people to avoid driving through flooded roads and warns campers and hikers to stay away from streams and creeks during heavy rain. It also emphasizes knowing one’s location relative to waterways when flooding is occurring or imminent.
This report describes the October 31 warning and its stated afternoon validity period. Conditions and individual road access can change before that period ends.
Sources National Weather Service — October 31 Flood Warning: https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.7ed2b34c4407a3fd56e528108c0237e50edd86bc.001.1