High Surf in Hawaii, August 13 to 14, 2001

Name: High Surf in Hawaii, August 13 to 14, 2001
Start: 2001-08-13T13:00
End: 2001-08-14T16:00
Location: Hawaii

August 13 to 14, 2001 · NWS HFO · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

A trade wind swell produced surf of 4 to 8 feet along the east- and southeast-facing shores of Kauai and the island of Hawaii.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
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Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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.

A trade wind swell produced surf of 4 to 8 feet along the east- and southeast-facing shores of Kauai and the island of Hawaii.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Honolulu, HI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 13, 10:00 AM HST, 3 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 13, 10:00 AM HST, 3 hours before

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
10 AM HST MON AUG 13 2001

SUMMARY...MODERATE TO LOCALLY FRESH TRADE WINDS WILL BLOW ACROSS THE
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS THE NEXT FEW DAYS. ISOLATED SHOWERS WILL RIDE IN ON
THE TRADES...BUT SUNNY AND CLEAR WEATHER WILL NEVERTHELESS PREVAIL.

DISCUSSION...THE 1030 MB HIGH FAR NORTH NORTHWEST OF HAWAII NEAR 42N
WILL WEAKEN AND MOVE SOUTH. IT WILL...IN ABOUT THREE DAYS TIME...END
UP NORTH OF THE ISLANDS NEAR 33N WITH A 1027 MB CENTRAL PRESSURE.
THE PRESSURE GRADIENT SOUTH OF THE HIGH AND THE TRADE WINDS BLOWING
ACROSS THE ISLANDS WILL CHANGE LITTLE IN SPITE OF ALL THE GOINGS ON.
NOTHING EXCEPTIONAL CAN BE SEEN ON SATELLITE IMAGERY...JUST THE
USUAL MIX OF CUMULUS AND STRATOCUMULUS CLOUDS. SAME GOES FOR THE
FOUR RADARS. CRAIG.

.PHFO......WARNINGS.....NONE
.          WATCHES......NONE
.          ADVISORIES...SMALL CRAFT

********************************************************************
FOR FIRE FIGHTING PURPOSES ONLY...THE FOLLOWING WINDS ARE BASED ON
THE MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST MODEL. ALLOWANCES ARE NOT MADE FOR DIURNAL
AND TERRAIN VARIATIONS BUT WINDS TEND TO BE STRONGER AND MORE
TURBULENT DURING THE DAY AND OVER HIGHER ELEVATIONS. TO READ BELOW
08025 IS A WIND FROM 080 DEGREES OR FROM THE EAST AT 25 KTS.

DATE   DAY  ALL ISLANDS

AUG 13 MON     08020
    14 TUE     08020
    15 WED     08020
    16 THU     08020
    17 FRI     08020
    18 SAT     08020
    19 SUN     08020
    20 MON     08020
    21 TUE     08020
    22 WED     08020

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.

High Surf, Kauai

When: August 13, 1:00 PM HST to August 14, 4:00 PM HST
Where: Kauai forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Surf, North and East Hawaii

When: August 13, 1:00 PM HST to August 14, 4:00 PM HST
Where: North and East Hawaii forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Surf, South Hawaii

When: August 13, 1:00 PM HST to August 14, 4:00 PM HST
Where: South Hawaii forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

What these are

High Surf: Large waves breaking on the shore that caused damage, erosion or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Hawaii in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, August 2001

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: 5263517, 5263518, 5263519.