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CRAIG GIMA
Kakaako highrises are seen against a hazy, partly cloudy sky late Tuesday morning.
Hazy, humid Kona weather conditions will likely linger over Hawaii until Thursday or Friday, when an approaching weather system brings some rain and a temporary change in the winds.
National Weather Service forecasters expect southerly winds to continue to blow volcanic emissions from the Big Island over Oahu and the other smaller islands through Thursday.
“We’re under the southeast (wind) flow and it’s just carrying it (vog) up the (island) chain,” said Matt Foster, a meteorologist with the Honolulu office of the National Weather Service.
The light southerly winds are also bringing muggy conditions with the possibility of afternoon showers over interior sections and cooler temperatures at night after the clouds clear,
The forecast for Honolulu and southern shores of Oahu calls for light southerly winds in the late morning and afternoon with highs between 76 and 82 through Thursday. Afternoon clouds should clear at night and lows between 63 and 71 degrees are expected Tuesday and Wednesday night.
The weather will start to change Thursday as a cold front nears, with winds becoming southwesterly and increasing to 15 to 20 mph. There’s also an increased chance of rain Thursday night.
The front is expected to reach Kauai late Thursday and move over Oahu and Maui County on Friday, before dissipating near the Big Island over the weekend.
“The winds might pick up a little bit ahead of the front but it won’t be as strong as the previous front,” Foster said.
Rains are also not expected to be heavy.
Saturday should bring a brief return of cooling tradewinds.
But vog and humid Kona weather will likely return by Sunday as another front moves closer to the islands and changes the wind direction again.
