Hurricane Lane continues to weaken, now with maximum sustained winds 110 mph and moving north at 5 mph, as it slowly approaches the Hawaiian Islands. It is a category 2 system as of 5 a.m. HST, and is about 150 miles west-southwest of Kailua-Kona and 180 miles from Honolulu. Hurricane warnings and watch locations remain the same.
The storm is forecast to continue slowly moving north toward the island chain through Saturday before making a sharp left turn to the west. Lane will continue to weaken as it encounters stronger wind shear.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 35 miles from the center of Lane and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 140 miles.
Heavy rain will continue to batter Hawaii through the weekend. Tropical storm-force wind gusts up to 70 mph will be possible along with increased wave activity. Conditions will improve Sunday and early next week.
Tropical storm conditions are already occurring on the Big Island, Maui County and Oahu. Hurricane conditions are expected over some areas of Maui County and Oahu starting tonight. Tropical storm or hurricane conditions are possible on Kauai starting tonight or Saturday.
Very large swells generated by the slow moving hurricane will severely impact the Hawaiian Islands into this weekend. These swells will produce life-threatening and damaging surf along exposed shorelines, particularly today through Saturday.
