Tourists ordered to leave Hawaii beaches as hurricane nears
Sirens wailed while workers piled sandbags in front of hotels and police warned tourists to leave worldfamous Waikiki Beach yesterday, as Hurricane Lane barrelled north after dumping more than two feet of rain on Hawaii’s mostly rural Big Island.
Emergency crews rescued five California tourists from a house they were renting in Hilo after a nearby ravine overflowed.
On of the visitors, Suzanne Demerais, said a tiny waterfall and small stream flowed near the home when she arrived with four of her friends from Los Angeles. However, the stream turned into a torrent and the river rose rapidly over 24 hours.
Hawaii County firefighters, who were in touch with the home’s owner, decided to evacuate the group before the water rose further. They floated the five out on their backs, Ms Demerais said. “It was quite an experience because we weren’t planning to have a hurricane during our vacation time,” she said.
Hurricane Lane, whose centre was still offshore, lashed the Big Island with more than 30 inches of rain in about 24 hours. It had maximum sustained winds near 120mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane.
A wind gust was recorded Ranch.
Forecasters say the centre of the storm was due over parts of Hawaii’s main islands last night, bringing dangerous surf of 20 feet.
About 200 miles north of Hilo, on the state’s most populated island of Oahu, employees of the Sheraton Waikiki resort filled sandbags to protect the oceanfront hotel from surging surf.
Shops along Waikiki’s glitzy Kalakaua Avenue stacked sandbags along the bottom of their glass windows to prepare for heavy rain and flash flooding. of 67mph at Kohala
Police used loudspeakers to tell surfers and swimmers to get out of the water, saying the beach would be closed until further notice.
The Marriott Resort Waikiki Beach in Honolulu designated a ballroom on the third floor as a shelter for guests and began removing lounge chairs from around the pool and bar.
At the Hilton Hawaiian Village, British guest Elisabeth Brinson said staff left a notice that the rooms would still have water and phone service, and a back-up generator would power one elevator per building in the event of a power outage.
Ms Brinson, who lives in Denver, said many shops were closed and those still open were frantic with people buying food, beer and water to take back to their rooms.
“We knew it was coming, so I tried to just cram as much as I could into the last few days in anticipation so we could cross things off our list,” Ms Brinson said.