High Wind in Hawaii, December 7 to 8, 1996

Name: High Wind in Hawaii, December 7 to 8, 1996
Start: 1996-12-07T02:00
End: 1996-12-08T18:00
Location: Hawaii

December 7 to 8, 1996 · NWS HFO · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Strong northerly winds of 35 to 45 mph with gusts estimated as high as 60 mph accompanied the gradient associated with a large high pressure area to the northwest of the state and a deepening low pressure center several hundred miles to the northeast of Hawaii.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 1
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS HFO wrote it up.

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Oahu

When: December 7, 2:00 AM HST to December 8, 6:00 PM HST
Where: Oahu forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect

Scattered areas of felled trees knocked down power and telephone lines in Diamond Head, Hawaii Kai, Kaneohe, Maili, Makaha, Nanakuli, Palolo Valley, Waialae, Waianae, and Waikiki. Some of the trees were in areas of moist soil due to record setting November rains. One person suffered minor injuries when hit by a small utility pole near Kapiolani Blvd and Harding Av in Honolulu.

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Hawaii in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, December 1996

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5582734.