Hurricane Lester churned along a course that would take it past the main Hawaiian Islands but was still expected to kick up high surf, wind and rain through the Labor Day weekend.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell asked Oahu residents to remain on alert.

The National Weather Service issued a high-surf warning for east shores that could see waves as high as 15 to 25 feet through tonight.

Ian Morrison, a meteorologist with the Honolulu office of the National Weather Service, said to expect “life-threatening surf.”

The weather service said the “surf will rise to dangerous and damaging levels along exposed east-facing shores.”

And Lester is expected to dump plenty of rain across Oahu.

“It’s going to be a wet weekend,” Caldwell said. “We’ll get some rain.”

A hurricane watch remained in effect for Oahu and Maui County.

The state Department of Transportation planned today to close the northbound, makai lane of Kamehameha Highway near Kanenelu Beach in Kaaawa for repairs to prevent erosion.

The DOT plans to contra-flow traffic into the southbound, or mauka, lane and warned drivers to expect to take extra time traveling through the area until 6 p.m. Monday.

If weekday work is necessary, work hours will be adjusted to accommodate the morning commute. Beginning Tuesday, work will start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 6 p.m. No overnight work is planned. No weekend work is expected after the initial holiday weekend.

In preparation for Lester, Gov. David Ige on Friday signed a supplemental emergency proclamation that authorizes the state DOT “to take prompt, expeditious action in dealing with preemptive, emergency and restorative work and repairs to Kamehameha Highway in Kaaawa on Oahu’s North Shore.”

On Tuesday Ige signed his original proclamation that “authorizes the expenditure of state monies for quick and efficient relief of disaster-related damages, losses and suffering resulting from the storm,” according to his office.

Based on computer modeling, Caldwell said “the real onslaught” for Oahu should be felt between 3 and 4 a.m. Sunday.

Lester remains a Category 2 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, and continues on a course that will take its center about 125 miles northeast of Oahu this evening. But tropical storm-force winds — 39 mph and up — extended about 140 miles from the center Friday, forecasters estimated.

Caldwell originally announced that the city’s emergency operations center would be activated at 6 a.m. today. Later, city spokesman Jesse Broder Van Dyke said Lester’s course meant that the emergency operations center would take “more of a monitoring posture rather than full activation” and would instead open two hours later, at 8 a.m. today.

The city will open shelters and evacuate campsites on Oahu if necessary, Caldwell said.

“We’re not letting our guard down,” Caldwell said. “We’re going to continue to plan just in case.”

The National Weather Service forecasts surf up to 25 feet for the eastern shores of all islands, and a high-surf warning remains in effect until 6 a.m. Sunday.

At 8 p.m., according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center, Lester was 240 miles east of Hilo and 410 miles east of Honolulu, moving west-northwest at 14 mph. Hurricane-force winds extended 40 miles from the center, and tropical storm-force winds, of 39 mph or more, extended 140 miles.

On Maui, officials warned the public that “large and dangerous swells are anticipated throughout the weekend along all east-facing shores in Maui County, with intermittent high surf along north-facing shores. Beach-goers are asked to exercise caution and follow any posted warnings.”

“Maui County is still under a hurricane watch, so we are asking everyone to continue to stay alert and informed,” said Maui County Emergency Management Officer Anna Foust. “We’re not completely out of harm’s way until Lester passes through the islands, so we will continue to monitor this system closely.”

For Oahu, the wind will shift to the northwest and west as the storm passes the island tonight, and become southerly on Sunday. The southerly wind will bring up tropical moisture from the south, resulting in muggy weather and the threat of afternoon showers.

The cooling tradewinds should return early next week.

Hurricane Lester followed Hurricane Madeline, which brushed south of Hawaii island Wednesday as a tropical storm and was downgraded to a remnant low Friday.

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Staff writer Craig Gima contributed to this report.