3/12/12 Hawaii Record Hail, Tornado, & Flooding

Just about all of last week and this past weekend, Hawaii was bombarded with very heavy rainfall, and some thunderstorms. The Governor of Hawaii declares disaster on 2 islands due to the flooding.Sections of Oahu, where the capital city Honolulu is, saw over 15 inches of rain. The city of Wainiha on Kauai, has seen more than 35 inches. The city of Lihue have seen over 15 inches. So many streets were either closed or covered in water on the island of Kauai, that the island of paradise became a traffic nightmare.

Hail the size of lemons and tennis balls were also a common occurrence in Hawaii in several locations. Meteorologists at the National Weather Service in Honolulu will compile the data they have later this week, but are already saying that they believe this was the largest hail ever measured in Hawaii.  Because many homes in Hawaii have metal roofs, several residents reported that as the hail started to fall, it sounded like the neighborhoods were being bombed.

If the flooding and hail weren't enough for the islands, the first tornado in four years struck the island of Oahu near the town of Kailua (about 12 miles north of Honolulu). It started off as a waterspout, but around 7:30am local time, it moved inland. It was a weak tornado, rated an EF0 with around 60-70mph winds. Luckily, it was only on the ground for about 15 minutes, and caused very minor damage. Some roofs were damaged, trees lined the streets, and a resident's trampoline was twisted and tossed down the street.

Thankfully, more tranquil weather is expected for the middle and late parts of this week. Hawaii will finally be able to go back to the paradise it is known to be.

Sources: KHON-TV, Yahoo News, MSNBC, Honolulu Star Advertiser, Chicago Tribune