Lane lashes Hawaii

This photo provided by Jessica Henricks shows flooding Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018, Wailuku River near Hilo, Hawaii. Hurricane Lane brought torrential rains to Hawaii's Big Island and Maui before the storm was expected to hit Oahu. A powerful hurricane unleashed torrents of rain and landslides Thursday that blocked roads on the rural Big Island but didn't scare tourists away from surfing and swimming at popular Honolulu beaches still preparing get pummeled by the erratic storm. (Jessica Henricks via AP) Torrential rains pounded Hawaii yesterday as Hurricane Lane, now downgraded to a tropical storm, crawled toward the island state, triggering landslides and “catastrophic” flooding and forcing thousands to seek emergency shelter.

Lane, which was reclassified as a tropical storm Saturday, was located around 120 miles south of the capital Honolulu, slowly moving in a north-northeastward direction at just three miles per hour.

Lane “weakens to a tropical storm south of Oahu, but rain bands will still bring more flooding and damaging winds to parts of the main Hawaiian islands,” the Central Pacific Hurricane Center said.

Lane, which packed still dangerous winds of 70 miles per hour, is forecast today to turn westward and away from the Pacific islands.

“Regardless of the hurricane track, life-threatening impacts will extend far beyond the center position as Lane approaches the islands,” the National Weather Center said.

“Excessive rainfall associated with this slow moving hurricane will continue to impact the Hawaiian Islands into the weekend, leading to catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding and landslides,” it added.

Brad Kieserman with the American Red Cross told reporters more than 2,000 people were sheltering in 45 evacuation centers.

“I would not be surprised to wake up tomorrow morning and see evacuation center populations at or above 2,500 or 3,000,” he added.

Almost 25 inches of rain fell on the iconic Waikiki Beach in the last 36 hours, forcing its closure as hoteliers and store owners piled sandbags outside their businesses.

The mainly-rural Big Island — home to the still-erupting Kilauea Volcano — has taken the worst hit so far, with more than 30 inches of rain in about 24 hours.

Experts warned of “whiteout conditions” — steam loaded with particles and toxic gases produced when cool moisture hits lava — as the storm passes.

Lane however should have little effect on the eruption “aside from minor rockfalls at the summit and increased steaming” from two vents, the US Geological Survey said.

However “whiteout conditions could occur… due to steam produced by heavy rain falling on still-hot lava flows.”

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) chief Brock Long warned of major power grid disruptions.

“We need to set the expectation that the power could go off for quite some time and the infrastructure is going to be heavily impacted,” Long said.

Residents across the state have been stocking up on water, food, gasoline and emergency supplies as Lane drew nearer.