Pacific logs first triple-hurricane stretch in a decade as Hawaii braces for Lowell

Governor cites $43M Lala damage as Hawaii faces third storm threat

Hawaii Governor Josh Green has declared a state of emergency as Hurricane Lowell approaches the islands, making it the third storm in just over three weeks to threaten the state during an active central Pacific hurricane season.

The National Hurricane Center reported early Sunday that Lowell was a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 125 mph, moving northwest at 6 mph. The storm is forecast to reach Hawaii as a Category 2, with its center passing roughly 130 miles west of Ni’ihau or 170 miles west of Kauai between Monday evening and Tuesday morning.

Although Lowell is forecast to track offshore and keep its most dangerous winds away from the islands, the NHC has issued a tropical storm warning for Kauai and Ni’ihau. The center said wind gusts above 39 mph are possible over the next 48 hours, along with heavy rain, high surf and dangerous coastal conditions.

The declaration follows two earlier storms that hit Hawaii in recent weeks. Tropical Storm Moke struck the southern part of Hawaii’s islands two weeks ago, bringing heavy rainfall and strong winds, just days after Hurricane Lala hit the region. Green said Lala alone caused at least $43 million in infrastructure damage on the Big Island, along with another $4.6 million in damage to homes.

The threat comes as the Pacific runs an unusually crowded hurricane season. As of Saturday, Hurricanes Karina, Lowell and Marie were simultaneously churning in the Pacific, marking the region’s first triple-hurricane stretch in a decade. The center was also monitoring a fourth potential system off the coast of Mexico. The Pacific averages eight hurricanes per year, the NHC said, making three simultaneous hurricanes highly unusual.

The escalating storm activity coincides with a United Nations warning that this year’s El Niño is forecast to become the strongest on record in four decades. A UN statement released on Thursday described El Niño as being “supersized before our eyes” and said the world is in “the danger zone of extreme weather.”

According to the statement, the latest data show a near 100 percent likelihood that the current El Niño will continue through February 2027. The stronger an El Niño becomes, the greater the chance it will significantly alter rainfall and temperature patterns around the world and help fuel extreme weather, the statement said.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has previously warned of a 69 percent chance that this El Niño will be the strongest in 70 years.