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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
University of Hawaii students tried to keep dry in the rain Thursday as they waited for the traffic light to change on Dole Street.
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A woman went missing in the ocean off Kauai’s Hanakapiai Beach after she was swept into the sea while attempting to cross a swollen stream, Kauai County officials said Thursday.
Kauai and other islands in the state were drenched by rain Thursday. Maui County was under a flash flood warning Thursday night with heavy rain already flooding some roads.
Both Maui and Hawaii island are under flood watches through tonight, and a winter storm warning is also posted for Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. The winter storm warning says from 6 to 12 inches of snow could accumulate above 10,500 feet. The heaviest snowfall is expected overnight.
Oahu can expect rainy weather through at least tonight, the NWS said.
On Kauai the unidentified woman was reportedly attempting to cross Hanakapiai Stream at about 4:30 p.m. Thursday when she was apparently swept out to sea.
Rescue crews from the Kauai Fire Department, including the Air 1 helicopter, lifeguards from the Kauai County Ocean Safety Bureau and the Coast Guard were conducting the search.
The woman was one of more than 50 hikers stranded on the far side of the stream while heading back to the Kee Beach trail head, the county said.
Rescuers were already en route after being notified of the hikers in distress, but some hikers tried to cross the stream before help arrived, officials said.
A crew aboard Air 1 and the Coast Guard conducted aerial searches while lifeguards searched along the shoreline. Firefighters from the Hanalei station hiked into Hanakapiai to help the stranded hikers cross the rain-swollen stream.