Red flag warning canceled for leeward areas of Hawaii
UPDATE: AUG. 11, 4 p.m.
The National Weather Service has canceled its red flag warning for leeward areas of all islands citing weakening winds.
UPDATE: 3:30 p.m.
The red flag warning has been extened to 6 p.m. Thursday for leeward sections of all islands.
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A red flag warning has been issued for the leeward side of all Hawaiian Islands from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today.
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The National Weather Service upgraded a former fire weather watch to a red flag warning, saying the combination of dry fuels, strong and gusty tradewinds, and low relative humidity will result in elevated fire danger today. Any fires that develop could display extreme fire behavior, and will likely spread rapidly and be difficult to control.
“A red flag warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will shortly,” NWS said in an advisory. “A red flag warning does not predict new fire starts.”
Outdoor burning is not recommended.
A wind advisory has also been issued for portions of Maui County and Hawaii island due to east to northeast winds of 20 to 30 mph, with higher gusts, in effect until 10 p.m. today.
“Winds this strong can knock down tree branches, blow away tents and unsecured objects,and make it difficult to drive, especially for high profile vehicles,” NWS warned.
The public should watch out for falling tree branches when walking or driving, and make sure tents and awnings are secure or taken down. The public should also be prepared for power outages.
Forecasters are expecting locally windy trades to continue through Thursday before easing back to moderate and breezy levels Friday through the weekend.
Fairly dry tradewind weather is expected to prevail during the next seven days, with showers favoring windward and mauka areas mainly at night and during the early morning hours.
In the Eastern Pacific, meanwhile, Tropical Storm Howard is expected to become post-tropical within a day, according to the National Hurricane Center of Miami.
As of 5 a.m., the center of Howard was about 655 miles west of the southern tip of Baja, Calif., with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph.
Howard is moving west-northwest near 10 mph, with a slight decrease in forward speed and gradual turn toward the west expected over the next few days.
