High Surf, North and East Hawaii
- When
- January 20, 5:00 PM HST to January 24, 1:00 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 in Hawaii, January 20 to 24, 2002
A strong trade wind swell continued to cause surf of 8 to 12 feet along the east-facing shores of the island of Hawaii.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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 strong trade wind swell continued to cause surf of 8 to 12 feet along the east-facing shores of 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 Jan 20, 4:00 PM HST, 1 hour earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 20, 4:00 PM HST, 1 hour before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE-CORRECTION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 4 PM HST SUN JAN 20 2002 SUMMARY...THE BRISK TRADE WINDS WILL TURN LIGHT AND VARIABLE BY TUESDAY. OUR PERSISTENT UNSTABLE AIR MASS WILL CAUSE MORE RAINFALL BUT THEY WILL BECOME MORE LIMITED AND TO MAINLY TO THE AFTERNOONS BY TUESDAY. DISCUSSION...NO CHANGE TO THE BASIC SCENARIO OF THE UPPER LEVEL LOW NEAR THE ISLANDS CAUSING BOTH WEAKENING WINDS BY TUESDAY AND OCCASIONAL HEAVY RAIN BURSTS THRU MOST OF THIS WEEK. THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE CULPRIT LOW IS BEGINNING TO WEAKEN AND IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OUT OF THE ISLAND AREA LATER THIS WEEK...TRADE WINDS ARE FORECAST TO RETURN BY THE END OF THE WEEK. UNTIL THEN THE COMING CALM IN THE WINDS WILL LARGELY LIMIT RAINFALL AS CONVECTIVE SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOONS...AGAIN FROM TUESDAY ON. .HFO.....WARNINGS.....NONE . WATCHES......NONE . ADVISORIES...SMALL CRAFT ALL HAWAIIAN WATERS . ...HIGH SURF ALL EAST SHORES
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
High Surf, South Hawaii
- When
- January 20, 5:00 PM HST to January 24, 1:00 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
- High Wind in Wyoming, January 20 to 21, 2002
- High Wind in Washington, January 20, 2002
- Dense Fog in Florida, January 20, 2002
- High Wind in Montana, January 20, 2002
- High Wind in Colorado, January 20 to 21, 2002
- Winter Storm in Wyoming, January 20 to 22, 2002
- Winter Storm in New York, January 20, 2002
- Frost and Freeze in North Carolina, January 20, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, January 20, 2002
- Heavy Rain in Hawaii, January 20, 2002
- Frost and Freeze in North Carolina, January 20, 2002
- High Wind in Montana, January 20, 2002
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, January 2002
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: 5278504, 5278505.