High Surf — Big Island East, Hawaii

2022-11-26 to 2022-11-29 · Big Island East, Hawaii

Event narrative

High surf and coastal flooding lifted boulders and other debris onto several roads in downtown Hilo, including Bayfront Highway and Kamehameha Avenue, forcing their closure. Also, several beaches around Hilo Bay were closed through the end of the month.

Wider weather episode

A large north-northeast (from 010-040 degrees) swell pushed into windward coasts on Friday night, Nov 25th, before steadily diminishing Saturday night, Nov 26th. Dangerously large breaking waves of 20 to 30 feet was forecast for north facing shores of Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui, and the Big Island of Hawaii. Surf heights eventually subsided below warning levels early Sunday, Nov 27th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1058391. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.