Tropical Storm Lala caused one death and widespread power outages while battering Hawaii's Big Island on Sunday [1, 2].
The storm's impact underscores the vulnerability of the island's infrastructure to extreme weather, even when a hurricane weakens before making landfall.
Lala had weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm as it skirted the island of Hawai‘i [1, 2]. Despite the downgrade, the system maintained sustained wind speeds of 70 mph [5] and delivered hurricane-force gusts that damaged at least 100 homes [6].
Heavy precipitation has caused significant flooding and mudslides across the region. Reports indicate that nearly three feet of rain was expected in some areas [4]. These conditions contributed to the death of one person [1].
The energy grid suffered severe disruptions during the storm's passage. While some reports mention thousands of outages [3], other data indicates that over 130,000 households were left without power [2].
Governor Josh Green said he has been monitoring the situation as emergency crews respond to the damage [1]. The storm's path avoided a direct landfall, but the surrounding rain bands and wind gusts caused significant disruption to the island's residents [1, 2].
Local officials said they continue to assess the full extent of the property damage as the storm moves away from the islands [1, 6].
“One person died and over 130,000 households lost power”
The disparity in reported power outages—ranging from thousands to over 130,000—highlights the challenges of real-time data collection during active weather emergencies. The event demonstrates that tropical storms can produce hurricane-level destruction through rainfall and gusts even without a formal hurricane landfall.
