Hawaii still could see severe impact

HONOLULU >> Hawaii geared up Saturday to face a hurricane that threatened to pummel the islands with dangerous surf, strong winds and flash floods even as residents grappled with escalating numbers of coronavirus cases.

Powerful storms are familiar to many in Hawaii who have spent the past several summers preparing for tropical cyclones. But the pandemic adds a new twist.

Luke Meyers, the administrator of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, urged people get ready by learning about the hazards where they live.

“We know that things are going to get wet, things are going to blow and things are going to slide,” Meyers said.

The National Weather Service on Saturday issued a hurricane warning for the island of Oahu, where the state’s largest city, Honolulu, is located. The Big Island and Maui remain in a hurricane watch.

Maximum sustained winds have decreased and were about 90 mph, making it a Category 1 hurricane by midday Saturday.

“Douglas is continuing a gradual, slow, weakening trend, which in itself is good news, but the bad news is that this hurricane is going to come very close to the islands even as it’s weakening,” said Robert Ballard, the science and operations officer at the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. “And we do expect significant impacts as it makes its point of closest approach or possible landfall as it comes through.”

Hawaii Gov. David Ige said officials anticipate rain, wind and storm surge on east-fasting shores.

“We know that it is weakening as it approaches, but it still will have significant impact on each island,” Ige said at a news conference.

State health department officials contacted each of the 625 people who are currently in isolation or quarantine as of Friday because they are either COVID-19 positive or have been in contact with someone who is.