Flash Flood, Kauai
- When
- March 25, 1:00 AM HST to 10:00 PM HST
- Where
- Kauai County, Hanalei
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood in Hawaii, March 25, 2002
Heavy showers fell over much of northern and eastern sections of Kauai. The rainfall was heavy enough to cause flooding of roadways leading to and from the Hanalei Bridge, which was closed for 21 hours on the 25th because of the flooding.
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
- 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.
Heavy showers fell over much of northern and eastern sections of Kauai. The rainfall was heavy enough to cause flooding of roadways leading to and from the Hanalei Bridge, which was closed for 21 hours on the 25th because of the flooding.
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 Mar 24, 8:30 PM HST, 4 hours 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Mar 24, 8:30 PM HST, 4 hours 30 minutes before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 830 PM HST SUN MAR 24 2002 SUMMARY...CLOUDY OVER MOST ISLANDS MONDAY BUT WET CONDITIONS APPEAR LIMITED TO KAUAI EXTENDING POSSIBLY TO OAHU. DISCUSSION...THE LOW RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RAINFALL ON KAUAI AND THE GENERAL OVERCAST OVER MOST OTHER ISLANDS IS STATIONARY. IT IS FORECAST TO VERY SLOWLY WEAKEN BUT MOVE AWAY BY WEDNESDAY. THE AIR MASS OVER KAUAI IS STILL UNSTABLE ENOUGH TO PRODUCE HEAVY SHOWERS DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. OTHER ISLANDS APPEAR FAR ENOUGH AWAY TO ESCAPE ANY SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION WITH ONLY OAHU HAVING THE POTENTIAL OF RECEIVING KAUAIS SHOWERS. WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF YET ANOTHER TROUGH WEST OF THE ISLANDS AFTER THE DISSIPATION OF THE CURRENT ONE THE RETURN OF TRADE WINDS ANYTIME THIS WEEK APPEARS UNLIKELY. MATSUDA .HFO...WARNINGS.....NONE . WATCHES......FLOOD FOR KAUAI . ADVISORIES...NONE
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Flash Flood
- Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flooding in Missouri, March 25, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Mississippi, March 25 to 26, 2002
- Damaging Wind in Texas, March 25, 2002
- Hail in Texas, March 25, 2002
- Winter Storm in Indiana, March 25 to 26, 2002
- Winter Storm in Illinois, March 25 to 26, 2002
- Winter Storm in Missouri, March 25 to 26, 2002
- Hail in Oklahoma, March 25, 2002
- Lightning Strike in Texas, March 25, 2002
- Winter Storm in Illinois, March 25, 2002
- Hail in Oklahoma, March 25, 2002
- Winter Storm in Illinois, March 25 to 26, 2002
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, March 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: 5287420.