Originally published by University of Hawai’i News

Photo credit: Office of the Governor

On September 7, nearly all of Kauaʻi received more than 2 inches of rain, with many areas exceeding 5 inches. High-elevation and north shore sensors show Mount Waiʻaleʻale recorded more than 23 inches of rain on September 7, accumulating nearly 36 inches over the full three-day storm period. Meanwhile, on Kauaʻi’s north shore, where rising river waters forced the closure of Hanalei Bridge, the Hawaiʻi Mesonet stations at Waipā and Lower Limahuli recorded more than 14 and 17 inches of rainfall, respectively, during the storm. To understand the storm’s full impact, a University of Hawaiʻi team reconstructed Hurricane Lowell hour by hour across Kauaʻi and the state using observations from the Hawaiʻi Mesonet, a statewide network of weather stations, alongside experimental high-resolution mapping tools. Users can visit a newly launched Hurricane Lowell website to explore interactive wind and rainfall maps, station observations and satellite storm replays. The site features interactive graphics that allow users to follow Lowell’s winds and rainfall through time, compare ground station observations with mapped estimates, and replay the storm using Hawaiʻi Mesonet measurements integrated with Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-West satellite imagery. It also references information from Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS) on the significant coastal hazards brought by the storm. Large surf and storm surge impacted south- and west-facing shores of Kauaʻi as the hurricane tracked to the west