Hurricane Lowell tracks toward Kauai as forecasters warn of dangerous surf, winds

Hurricane Lowell was tracking slowly northward as of Saturday afternoon, with forecasters expecting the storm to complete its turn on Sunday, according to the Hawai'i Emergency Management Agency (HIEMA) [1]. The estate's own monitoring instruments flagged the system at 105 knots — roughly 121mph — at coordinates 15.2, -163.7, though HIEMA's Saturday 4:35pm update classified Lowell as a category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 130mph, placing its centre 630 miles south-southwest of Līhu'e [1]. The discrepancy in wind speed readings between the trigger and the agency's figures is not explained in the material and remains unconfirmed. Current track forecasts cited by HIEMA suggest Lowell will pass just west of Ni'ihau and Kaua'i overnight on Monday into early Tuesday [1]. The agency stressed that the track "could change," urging residents across the Hawaiian Islands to review family emergency plans and hurricane readiness now rather than wait [1]. The most immediate hazard flagged is surf. Ni'ihau, Kaua'i and O'ahu may see "extremely dangerous surf" on southern and western exposed shores, with high surf expected statewide on both Monday and Tuesday, according to HIEMA [1]. Wind forecasts point to damaging gusts of up to 75mph in Kaua'i County and up to 50mph on O'ahu across the same two days [1]. Rainfall is the other major concern. HIEMA's isolated local rainfall predictions run as high as 10 inches for Ni'ihau, Kaua'i and the southeast Big Island, 8 inches for windward Maui, and 2 to 6 inches elsewhere in the islands [1]. Heavy rain is likely to begin as early as Sunday afternoon, with flash floods and landslides possible, particularly in steep terrain [1]. HIEMA's recommended actions are practical: prepare property for wind, surf, rain and flooding — especially in the western half of the state, covering Ni'ihau, Kaua'i and O'ahu — and be ready to operate without electricity if high winds knock out power [1]. The agency is pointing residents toward its emergency alert signup at ready.hawaii.gov/alerts, and each county maintains its own civil defense contacts and shelter lists, from Hawai'i County Civil Defense to the Kauai Emergency Management Agency [1]. HIEMA's key messages were last updated at 4:40pm on September 5, with the next scheduled update due at 11am on September 6 [1]. The agency runs updates four times daily — 5am, 11am, 5pm and 11pm HST — and its products include a forecast cone, estimated wind arrival times, radar and marine forecasts [1]. What isn't established in this material: any confirmed landfall, evacuation orders, or a reconciliation of the storm's precise wind speed between the estate's instrument reading and HIEMA's category 4 assessment. Wayne should watch for HIEMA's Sunday 11am update, which should sharpen the track as Lowell completes its northward turn — and clarify whether the wind-speed gap resolves as the storm approaches the islands.