Bad news is that rain’s scarce, too Heavy rain at times during the past two weeks hasn’t eased the threat of fires on Kauai’s west side and on state and forestry lands, officials say. But the good news from the
Bad news is that rain’s scarce, too
Heavy rain at times during the past two weeks hasn’t eased the threat of fires on Kauai’s west side and on state and forestry lands, officials say.
But the good news from the National Weather Service is that there are no signs a hurricane will develop in the next three weeks to threaten Hawai’i.
The hurricane season runs from June to November.
“Yes, I would say that there is always a freak chance” of a hurricane, “but it doesn’t look like anything is brewing out there,” said Kevin Kodama, a chief hydrologist with the National Weather Service on Oahu.
Across the state, windward areas have received normal-to-above normal rainfall, while the leeward areas have not had enough rain, Kodama said.
Dry weather conditions have persisted in the leeward areas for four years, and it isn’t known when the pattern will change, Kodama said.
“We are entering into that time of year – winter – when you would think there would be more rain. But the (dry weather) situation might be part of a normal cycle. It is hard to say,” Kodama said. “It is part of mother nature’s cycle.”
The dry weather has state forestry and state park officials on Kaua’i worried about possible fires on thousands of acres of public land.
Ed Petteys, district manager of the Department of Land and Natural Resources forestry division on Kaua’i, said some areas have been “critically dry” for more than a year.
But instead of closing the land to public use, the division has signed up volunteers to report fires with portable radios.
On Oct. 29, a fire ignited on Haeleele Ridge, located near a forest reserve outside Waimea Canyon State Park, and burned a “fraction of an acre” before a volunteer reported the fire, Petteys said. DLNR staffers and Kaua’i County put out the fire before it spread, Petteys said.
“We’ve been very concerned, but we have found other solutions than closing the gate,” he said.
Wayne Souza, district supervisor of the state parks on Kaua’i, said Koke’e hiking trails are susceptible to fires, but fire teams are ready to respond.
Communities from Hanapepe to Kekaha continue to register less than normal rainfall. Yearly rainfall dropped 20 to 30 inches from Lihu’e to Kalaheo, with Hanapepe receiving only 12 inches this year, about 56 percent below normal, Kodama said.
In contrast, rainfall reached near-normal averages on the North Shore and in east Kaua’i, he said.
October brought six to eight inches of rain to areas from Hanalei to Wailua. To date, Hanalei has had 70 to 80 inches, nearly on par with average readings.
No readings for east Kaua’i were available, but Kapahi in the Kawaihau district, the largest population area on the island, received 56 inches this year, about 89 percent of normal rainfall readings, Kodama reported.
As part of a multi-million-dollar plan to upgrade Kaua’i’s public drinking water system, residents have been asked by the Kaua’i County Department of Water to voluntarily cut water use.
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) and mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net
