The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for the state of Hawaii, with up to 12 inches of snow expected.
The NWS weather station in Honolulu issued an urgent warning for the summits of the Big Island of Hawaii at 3:43 a.m. Hawaii Standard Time Saturday. Blizzard conditions were expected, with gusts of up to 100 miles per hour, and accumulations of up to 12 inches or more of snow were anticipated as well, the weather advisory said. The high wind gusts would also cause significant drifts of snow to accumulate, the NWS said, via the New York Post.
“Travel could be very difficult to impossible. Blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility at times, with periods of zero visibility,” the NWS advisory said. “Travel should be restricted to emergencies only. If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle.”
The blizzard warning remains in effect until Sunday at 6 p.m. local time.
AccuWeather reports that the blizzard is part of a powerful storm coming across the state, with heavy rain expected for all of the islands over the next several days. The state capital of Honolulu could see as much as 6-12 inches of rain, with as many as 40 inches of rain possible on the south and southwest-facing mountainsides of the islands. That kind of rainfall can be dangerous, leading to flooding and mudslides. Flood watches have been issued for all of the islands, and are expected to last through Monday, AccuWeather reported.
The storm also counters a period of “abnormally dry” weather recently. The month of November was especially dry, AccuWeather reported. Honolulu, which in a normal year reports about 2.25 inches of rain in the month of November, reported just 0.09 inches of rain last month. The city of Hilo, located on the Big Island of Hawaii, typically receives about 14 inches of rain in November, but received just 6 inches in November 2021.
The blizzard warning is the first warning issued for Hawaii since 2018, though Accuweather notes that the NWS had issued blizzard warnings for Hawaii more recently than it had for much of the East Coast of the Continental U.S., including New York, Philadelphia, and other major cities. “Although Hawaii has the reputation of year-round warmth, snow actually makes a yearly appearance atop some of its highest peaks,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Lauren Hyde. Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, each standing at over 13,000 feet above sea level, experience annual snowfall because from November until March, temperatures at the peaks regularly drop below freezing, the Mercury News added.
Hawaii is not the first state to experience rare and extreme winter weather this year. The Biden administration declared a federal emergency after the state of Texas was hit by an “unprecedented” blast of harsh winter weather in February. The extreme weather knocked out power for millions of Texans and damaged the state’s utility infrastructure, leading to a spike in energy prices and blackouts as the power grid struggled to keep up with increased demand.