Hurricane loses power but still packs punch

HONOLULU – Hurricane Lane continued to lose power as it churned slowly toward the Hawaiian islands Friday, pouring rain on the Big Island while Oahu prepared and waited – still unsure what kind of impact the once-ominous storm would have.

Lane was downgraded to a Category 2 storm Friday, and National Weather Service meteorologist Gavin Shigesato said that by Sunday, it was likely to be a tropical storm.

“We do expect it to weaken slowly in the next 24 to 48 hours,” he said. It’s also moving very slowly, he said, barely topping 5 mph.

But the fallout from what Hurricane Lane had wrought was still playing out over the Big Island and neighboring Maui, where flooding, fires, road closures and power outages were affecting residents on both islands.

“The slow movement of Lane also greatly increases the threat for prolonged heavy rainfall and extreme rainfall totals,” the Central Pacific Hurricane Center said.

Hawaii Gov. David Ige cautioned late Friday that Hurricane Lane may not be finished yet.

“It is still a powerful and can be a very damaging storm,” Ige said.

Shigesato said the eye of the hurricane was 180 miles south of Honolulu. He said wind speeds in the hurricane were clocked at 105 mph as the hurricane lumbers northward.

He said sheering winds were making the storm weaker and the island’s famous trade winds likely would help push it westward as it continues to lose power.

Parts of the Big Island on the eastern side had received about 2 feet of rain in the past 24 hours, Shigesato said, while Kona, on the western side, had received virtually no rain.

High surf warnings were in effect on Oahu through Saturday evening.

Emergency crews, meanwhile, rescued five California tourists from a home they were renting in Hilo after a nearby gulch overflowed and flooded their house.

Suzanne Demerais said a tiny waterfall and small stream flowed near the home when she first arrived with four of her friends from the Los Angeles area. But the stream turned into a torrent, and the water level rose rapidly over 24 hours.