Hawaii, 2003

Flash Flood in Hawaii, December 7 to 8, 2003

December 7 to 8, 2003 · NWS HFO · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Heavy rain and showers forced Moanalua Stream over its banks, which in turn flooded Moanalua Freeway near Moanalua Gardens in south-central Oahu. Many businesses close to the freeway, in Mapunapuna, suffered damage as flood waters flowed into ground floors of buildings and into other low-lying areas.

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

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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 rain and showers forced Moanalua Stream over its banks, which in turn flooded Moanalua Freeway near Moanalua Gardens in south-central Oahu. Many businesses close to the freeway, in Mapunapuna, suffered damage as flood waters flowed into ground floors of buildings and into other low-lying areas. Damage estimates were not available. No serious injuries were reported.

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 Dec 7, 8:30 PM HST, 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 7, 8:30 PM HST, 25 minutes before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
830 PM HST SUN DEC 7 2003

.SYNOPSIS...HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE OVER
KAUAI THROUGH MONDAY MORNING. ACTIVITY OVER OAHU IS EXPECTED TO
DIMINISH BEFORE MONDAY MORNING. THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BECOME MORE
STABLE MONDAY AND TRADE WINDS WILL STRENGTHEN WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT
OF HIGH PRESSURE NORTH OF THE STATE.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
ALTHOUGH THE OLD UPPER LEVEL LOW THAT WAS WEST OF KAUAI IS LIFTING
OUT TO THE NORTHEAST A LARGER ONE IS STRENGTHENING ABOUT 1000 MILES
WEST OF KAUAI. IT IS THROWING UP ABUNDANT MID AND HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS
JUST WEST OF THE STATE. CONDITIONS FOR HEAVY PRECIPITATION CONTINUE
TO EXIST OVER KAUAI DUE TO THE WEAK BUT MOIST SOUTHWEST FLOW AND
COOL TEMPERATURES AT MID ATMOSPHERIC LEVELS EVEN INTO MONDAY
MORNING. ADDITIONALLY THERE IS SOME INCREASE IN NORTHEAST WINDS
NORTH OF THE STATE WHICH WOULD CONTRIBUTE TO CONVERGENCE. THEREFORE
A FLOOD WATCH WILL BE ISSUED FOR KAUAI. THE FLOOD WARNING FOR OAHU
WILL BE EXTENDED A COUPLE MORE HOURS SINCE HEAVY SHOWER ACTIVITY
CONTINUES.

IMPROVING WEATHER FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE STATE IS EXPECTED
BEGINNING MONDAY WITH THE STABILIZING INFLUENCE OF THE HIGH THAT
WILL MOVE TO THE NORTH AND THEN NORTHEAST OF THE STATE OVER THE NEXT
COUPLE OF DAYS. THE TRADES WILL PICK UP IN THE TIGHTER PRESSURE
GRADIENT SOUTH OF THE HIGH.

&&

.HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR PART OF OAHU UNTIL 1030
FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR KAUAI
SPECIAL MARINE WARNING KAUAI CHANNEL

&&

HOAG

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Honolulu

When
December 7, 8:55 PM HST to December 8, 2:20 AM HST
Where
Honolulu County, 4 mi SE of Aiea
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

More

Every storm in Hawaii in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, December 2003

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: 5327913.