Hurricane Lowell strikes Kauai with 110mph winds and widespread outages
Category 2 Hurricane Lowell struck Hawaii's western islands with winds up to 110mph, causing widespread power outages across three islands.
Hurricane Lowell tracked 50 miles from Ni'ihau as a category 2 storm on Tuesday night with winds up to 110mph. Strong winds knocked out power across Ni'ihau, Kauai and O'ahu.
A tornado watch was issued for Kauai Monday night into Tuesday morning, likely Hawaii's first ever. No tornado was reported.
Hurricanes can make tornadoes in thunderstorms in rain bands away from the storm's center. Five named storms have hit the central Pacific this year.
El Niño has been a key driver of this above-normal hurricane season, the National Weather Service noted.
- 110 mph
- Wind speed
- Category 2
- Storm category
- 50 miles
- Distance from Ni'ihau
- Five in central Pacific
- Named storms this year
Why it mattersStrong hurricanes can shift path and spawn tornadoes; remote Hawaiian islands rely on limited backup power during extended outages.
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