High Surf, Kauai
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 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 in Hawaii, January 2 to 7, 2003
A powerful storm low northwest of Hawaii generated surf of 15 to 30 feet along the northwest-facing shores of all the islands. One man, visiting Hookena Beach in the South Kona District on the Big Island of Hawaii, drowned as he was pulled out to sea by a strong current caused by the high surf on the 5th.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 4 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
- 1
- Injuries
- 1
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 6
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 powerful storm low northwest of Hawaii generated surf of 15 to 30 feet along the northwest-facing shores of all the islands. One man, visiting Hookena Beach in the South Kona District on the Big Island of Hawaii, drowned as he was pulled out to sea by a strong current caused by the high surf on the 5th. A 20 year-old man from Switzerland suffered lacerations while boogie boarding in the high surf near The Pines in North Kona on the 6th of January. No other serious injuries were reported.Some damage occurred along beaches and beach-front properties, especially on the west side of the Big Island and the North Shore of Oahu. However, no damage estimates were available.
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 2, 4:00 PM HST, 4 hours earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 2, 4:00 PM HST, 4 hours before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 4 PM HST THU JAN 2 2003 SUMMARY...LIGHT WINDS WITH CLEARING SKIES ARE EXPECTED STATEWIDE TONIGHT...WITH PLENTY OF SUNSHINE FRIDAY AS HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE STATE REMAINS IN CONTROL OF OUR WEATHER. SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BE INCREASING FRIDAY AFTERNOON INTO SATURDAY...HOWEVER...AS A RATHER VIGOROUS LOW PASSES NORTH OF THE ISLANDS SATURDAY. A COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS LOW WILL SWEEP THROUGH THE ISLANDS SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY...BRINGING SHOWERS AND A WIND SHIFT TO NORTH. SATELLITE...A BAND OF SCATTERED TO BROKEN LOW CLOUDS CONTINUES TO AFFECT OAHU...THE KAIWI CHANNEL AND PORTIONS OF MOLOKAI THIS AFTERNOON. THESE CLOUDS AND SHOWERS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH A DISSIPATING SHEAR LINE AND SHOULD DISAPPEAR THIS EVENING. ANOTHER NARROW BAND OF SCATTERED TO BROKEN LOW CLOUDS IS ALSO DISSIPATING TO THE SOUTHEAST OF THE BIG ISLAND. SKIES ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS ADJACENT TO THE REMAINDER OF THE ISLANDS WERE MOSTLY CLEAR. SEA BREEZE CONVERGENCE WAS PRODUCING BROKEN TO LOCALLY OVERCAST LOW CLOUDS ON PORTIONS OF THE ISLANDS THEMSELVES. THE GENERAL MOTION OF INDIVIDUAL LOW CLOUD ELEMENTS WEST OF MOLOKAI WAS TOWARD THE EAST NORTHEAST AT ABOUT 10 MPH. THE LOW CLOUDS EAST OF THE BIG ISLAND WERE MOVING TOWARD THE WEST OR WEST NORTHWEST AT LESS THAN 10 MPH. OTHERWISE...THERE WAS LITTLE SIGNIFICANT MOTION OF THE LOW CLOUDS NEAR THE REMAINING HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. DISCUSSION...A DISSIPATING SHEARLINE REMAINS OVER OAHU...BUT ASSOCIATED CLOUDINESS IS DIMINISHING. WITH ONLY A WEAK SHIFT IN THE WINDS ACROSS THIS SHEARLINE...GENERALLY LIGHT WINDS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE STATE THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM FAR TO OUR WEST NEAR 34N 165E THIS AFTERNOON WILL MOVE NEARLY DUE EAST AND PASS NORTH OF THE STATE ON SATURDAY. THIS LOW WILL STRENGTHEN RAPIDLY TO STORM STRENGTH...AND WILL SEND A COLD FRONT THROUGH THE STATE OVER THE COMING WEEKEND. THIS WILL TURN OUR WINDS SOUTHERLY BY LATE FRIDAY...THEN STRENGTHEN THEM TO SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY LEVELS FROM THE SOUTHWEST ON SATURDAY. WITH THE FRONTAL PASSAGE ACROSS THE STATE SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY...WINDS WILL SWITCH TO NORTHERLY AND INCREASE TO 15 TO 30 MPH BY MONDAY. THE FRONT WILL ALSO BRING A PERIOD OF SHOWERS WITH ITS PASSAGE...BUT AT THIS TIME ONLY LIGHT TO MODERATE RAINFALL AMOUNTS ARE EXPECTED. WINDS WILL TREND TO THE MORE NORMAL TRADE DIRECTION MONDAY AND TUESDAY. SURF...THE FIRST OF SEVERAL SWELLS IS ARRIVING ALONG NORTHWEST FACING SHORES THIS AFTERNOON WITH HEIGHTS EXPECTED TO REACH 15 TO 20 FEET TONIGHT. AN EVEN LARGER SWELL WILL REACH NORTHWEST FACING SHORES SATURDAY NIGHT FROM THE FAST MOVING LOW PASSING TO OUR NORTH. THIS SWELL COULD GENERATE SURF UPWARDS OF 25 FEET...OR HIGH SURF WARNING LEVELS. FARRELL .HFO...WATCHES WARNINGS...NONE . ADVISORIES.........HIGH SURF NW FACING SHORES
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
6 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
High Surf, Lanai
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 PM HST
- Where
- Lanai forecast zone
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Maui
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 PM HST
- Where
- Maui forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Molokai
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 PM HST
- Where
- Molokai forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
High Surf, Oahu
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 PM HST
- Where
- Oahu forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
High Surf, West Hawaii
- When
- January 2, 8:00 PM HST to January 7, 8:00 PM HST
- Where
- West Hawaii forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Surf, West Hawaii | 2003-01-05 | 51 | Male | In Water | Direct |
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 Washington, January 2 to 3, 2003
- Storm Surge in Washington, January 2 to 3, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, January 2 to 3, 2003
- Winter Storm in Missouri, January 2, 2003
- Storm Surge in New Jersey, January 2 to 4, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Pennsylvania, January 2 to 4, 2003
- Winter Storm in Indiana, January 2 to 3, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Illinois, January 2, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in New Jersey, January 2 to 4, 2003
- Marine Thunderstorm Winds in Gulf of Mexico, January 2, 2003
- Winter Storm in Illinois, January 2, 2003
- Storm Surge in Delaware, January 2 to 3, 2003
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, January 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: 5328122, 5328123, 5328124, 5328426, 5328427, 5328428.