UPDATE 10:40 p.m.

The National Weather Service at 3:08 p.m. issued a high surf warning for rising surf along north and west facing shores of Kauai, Niihau, Oahu and Molokai, and for north facing shores of Maui.

A large northwest swell spreading down across the island chain combined with breezy west to northwest winds will cause a dramatic increase in surf heights across most of the north and west facing shores of the smaller islands and will continue into tomorrow, forecasters said.

A high wind warning for Hawaii Island is in effect until 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Winds are expected to be between 30 and 60 mph with gusts up to 75 mph for the summits of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, forecasters said.

Motorists are urged to drive with caution.

Forecasters also issued a high surf advisory for rising surf along the west facing shores of Hawaii Island until 6 p.m. tomorrow.

Beach goers, swimmers and surfers are urged to heed all advice from ocean safety officials.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE

A weak cold front moving down the island chain brought light showers to Oahu and Maui County this morning and up to a half-inch of rain to Kauai overnight. Meanwhile, a large northwest swell prompted forecasters to issue a high surf warning for most north and west shore beaches.

West winds at lower elevations pushed most of the vog to the east, except on the Big Island.

However, strong winds in the upper atmosphere generated a wind advisory for Big Island summits until 6 a.m. Wednesday. Winds of 30 to 55 mph may gust to 65 mph on Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa.

The high surf warning is scheduled to run through 6 p.m. Wednesday and covers the north shores of Oahu, Maui, Molokai and the north and west shores of Kauai County. Surf along affected shores is expected to reach 20 to 25 feet late today, and up to 28 to 32 feet tonight. The west shores of Oahu and Molokai could see surf of 15 to 20 feet late today, and up to 18 to 25 feet tonight and Wednesday.

Forecasters warn that surf this large can sweep across beaches, create strong rip currents and make swimming hazardous, even deadly.

South shores are expecting a small- to moderate-surf as a south swell builds and peaks on Wednesday. Surf is expected to be below-advisory levels at 3 to 6 feet.

The cold front moving over the state is expected to continue to weaken and should reach Hawaii island tonight.

Temperatures will drop into the 60s tonight and Wednesday as the cold front passes.

Winds will continue to be light and from the west on Wednesday, turning southerly on Thursday. But tradewinds should return to the islands by the weekend and keep most of the vog away from Oahu.