UPDATE: 5 p.m.

Hurricane Darby is expected to continue weakening through the weekend as it heads south of the Big Island.

Darby, with winds at 90 mph, is 980 miles east-southeast of Hilo. Darby is moving west at 16 mph and the forecast track will bring the center of Darby, or remnants of it, south of the Big Island on Saturday.

Darby is expected to become a tropical storm on Friday and further weaken to a post-tropical cyclone on Saturday before dissipating.

2 p.m.

The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency activated the State Emergency Operations Center at 8 a.m. today to monitor Hurricane Darby after the weakening storm system crossed into the Central Pacific overnight.

This activation, HI-EMA officials said, provides additional resources to plan for potential impacts and to coordinate with Hawaii’s counties if they need support with any storm response.

As of 11 a.m., the center of Hurricane Darby was about 870 miles east of Hilo, with maximum sustained near 100 mph and higher gusts.

“While the National Weather Service expects Darby to weaken and pass to our south this weekend, the remains of the tropical system could still bring several inches of rain and locally strong winds to the Big Island and Maui by Saturday,” Luke Meyers, HI-EMA administrator, said in a news release “When you combine those potential impacts with the high surf we expect this weekend, we want to make sure we’re ready for anything, just in case.”

HI-EMA said Darby provides a reminder that hurricane season can threaten Hawaii even if a storm passes well offshore by bringing wind, waves, and flooding.

Hawaii County Civil Defense, meanwhile, said Darby is forecast to bring breezy trades, 3 to 5 inches of rain, and 8- to 12-foot waves to the east facing shores of Hawaii island on Saturday.

Starting Friday, the weather service expects 15- to 20-foot waves from a separate swell coming in from the southern hemisphere, which may prompt a high surf warning for south shores through Saturday.

Civil Defense officials warned that Hawaii island beaches may be closed without notice.

HI-EMA offered the following tips to residents and visitors before and during heavy weather:

>> Check the places where you live, work and play for potential hazards, such as blocked drainage or tree limbs that could blow through a window or roof.

>> Top up fuel tanks and charge mobile phones.

>> Have water and food, necessary medicine, masks and sanitizer, a battery-powered radio and other emergency supplies. HI-EMA recommends residents be “two weeks ready,” but even a few days’ worth makes you more prepared, they say. Also, remember to stock supplies for pets.

>> There’s never a bad time to make an emergency plan with your family — and practice it.

HI-EMA also warns the public to avoid driving into water if there’s flooding because flowing water can quickly carry a car away.

11 a.m.

Hurricane Darby is slowly weakening far east-southeast of the Hawaiian islands, and Central Pacific Hurricane Center forecasters expect the storm to quickly dissipate over the next few days.

As of 11 a.m., the center of Hurricane Darby was about 870 miles east of Hilo, with maximum sustained near 100 mph, with higher gusts.

Darby continues to move west at close to 16 mph and is expected to continue this motion for the next few days.

Significant weakening is forecast during the next 48 hours, with Darby expected to become a post-tropical cyclone on Saturday before dissipating by Sunday.

The remnants of Darby are forecast to pass south of Hawaii island on Saturday.

Forecasters from the National Weather Service of Honolulu say locally strong trades will focus heavier showers over the windward side of Hawaii island and possibly Maui on Saturday.

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Hurricane Darby has entered the Central Pacific as a Category 2 storm, but weather officials expect rapid weakening soon.

Darby was about 955 miles east of Hilo at 5 a.m today, packing maximum sustained winds of 105 mph and moving west-northwest at 16 mph, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu.

Weather officials expect Darby to continue on its current track through Friday morning before turning west.

Although Darby is on track to pass a few hundred miles south of the main Hawaiian Islands this weekend, the storm is forecast to become a post-tropical cyclone on Saturday before dissipating by Sunday, CPHC officials said.

Darby is a compact storm with hurricane-force winds extending up to 15 miles from its center and tropical-storm-force winds extending up to 45 miles.

Although it is forecast to pass far south of the islands this weekend, the remnants of Darby are expected to bring locally strong tradewinds and heavy showers over windward areas of the Big Island and possibly Maui on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

Darby is the first named tropical cyclone in the Central Pacific for the 2022 hurricane season, which began on June 1 and extends through November.