Figure caption, "It's actually hard for us to see... I've got a lot of water in my eyes," says a local reporter during a live TV broadcast on the Hawaii County coast.
Hawaii is bracing for what could be its first direct hit from a hurricane since 1992, as category one storm Lala churns off its coast.
Com ventos de 75mph (120km/h), Lala ganhou força de furacão no sábado. Em um cenário de pior caso, poderia despejar até 25in (63cm) de chuva na Ilha Grande e produzir uma onda de tempestade de 3ft.
A hurricane warning is in effect for Big Island, while Maui County, Oahu, Kauai and Niihau are under a tropical storm warnings. Officials have told residents to prepare for "life-threatening" conditions, including floods and mudslides.
The storm is expected to either make landfall or pass close to the southern tip of Big Island on Saturday, before continuing west.
The last time a hurricane made landfall on Hawaii's Big Island was 155 years ago, according to the Associated Press news agency.
Over the weekend, Lala will continue moving westwards, and may weaken into a tropical storm, with the centre passing just below Hawaii's other islands.
Fonte da imagem, Getty Images Legenda da figura, Assista: Ventos fortes e chuvas intensas em Maui e Honolulu à medida que a tempestade Lala se aproxima.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green warned residents to brace for "an incredible amount of water.
He said on X: "Damaging winds, heavy rain, flash flooding and dangerous surf are possible across the state through the weekend.
Dozens of flights have been cancelled.
No aeroporto internacional Ellison Onizuka Kona - o maior aeroporto do Big Island - 40% dos voos foram cancelados, de acordo com o flightaware.com. Cerca de 80% dos voos foram cancelados em seu outro aeroporto principal, o Aeroporto Internacional de Hilo.
The more dire forecasts from the National Weather Service (NWS) have been issued for areas within Big Island's south-east.
Major rainfall flooding may prompt many evacuations and rescues," the NWS said, adding that rivers and tributaries "may rapidly overflow their banks in multiple places.
Residents were repeatedly urged by officials to prepare for the storm early.
Local message boards on Facebook show residents filling bags with sand to protect their homes and inquiring whether stores remained open in the early hours on Saturday.
A Agência de Defesa Civil do Condado do Havaí disse que abrigos públicos estavam disponíveis em todos os condados da Ilha Grande.
At this time, you should have completed your storm-ready preparations and focusing on your Sheltering Plan," the agency said on X.
Iniki, a powerful category four storm, was the last hurricane to strike Hawaii back in 1992.
Hurricane season in the US has been relatively quiet the last few years - the last major storm was category three Hurricane Milton, which hit Florida in October 2024.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has said that 2026 might be another low-frequency year for hurricanes in the US, predicting , externala 55% chance of a below-normal season.
No mês passado, os oceanos do mundo atingiram as temperaturas mais altas já registradas para julho, de acordo com o serviço de monitoramento climático da UE.
The record temperatures were partly fuelled by developing El Niño conditions in the Pacific.
It was also the joint second-warmest July globally on record, with temperatures 1. 47C above the estimated pre-industrial average, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
World's oceans hit record-high July temperaturesPublished5 days ago.
Em números
- Com ventos de 75mph (120km/h), Lala ganhou força de furacão no sábado
Fontes
Informação baseada em material público de BBC World, reescrito pela redação ULTRA NOTÍCIAS.
