A strong low north of the state, along with a cold front moving through the islands, brought gusty winds to most of the island chain. The winds damaged some roofs and caused several power outages in the isles.
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.
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.
The episode as NWS HFO wrote it up.
A strong low north of the state, along with a cold front moving through the islands, brought gusty winds to most of the island chain. The winds damaged some roofs and caused several power outages in the isles. Most significantly, a falling tree limb injured a man and killed his young daughter as they hiked along Maunawili Trail on Oahu just before 11 AM on the 18th. Damage estimates were not available.
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 17, 8:30 PM HST, 13 hours 57 minutes earlier.
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 830 PM HST SAT DEC 17 2005 .SYNOPSIS... KONA WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE THROUGH SUNDAY AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES THE ISLANDS FROM THE NORTHWEST. THE FRONT WILL DROP SOUTH OVER KAUAI LATE SUNDAY BRINGING A BAND OF CLOUDS AND SHOWERS. THE FRONT WILL SLOW AND WEAKEN AS IT PUSHES ACROSSOAHU AND MAUI COUNTY SUNDAY NIGHT. WHATEVER REMAINS WILL OF THE FRONT WILL STALL NEAR THE BIG ISLAND ON MONDAY. THE RIDGE WILL REDEVELOP NORTH OF THE ISLANDS NEXT WEEK FOR A PROLONGED PERIOD OF LIGHT WINDS. && .DISCUSSION... THE SURFACE RIDGE IS CURRENTLY JUST SOUTH OF THE BIG ISLAND...WITH WSW OR KONA FLOW OVER THE ISLANDS AND TO OUR NORTH. THE VERY ACTIVE AND STORMY PATTERN OVER THE NORTHERN PACIFIC OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS AND WILL KEEP THE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE SHUNTED FARTHER SOUTH THAN NORMAL...OVER OR CLOSE TO THE ISLANDS. A COLD FRONT TRAILING FROM ONE OF THESE LOWS WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE ISLANDS LATE SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT WITH LIMITED MOISTURE AVAILABLE TO WORK AND LIMITED UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT...THIS FRONT WILL NOT PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF RAINFALL. THE LATEST MODEL RUNS APPEAR TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT OUR FORECAST TIMING...WITH THE FRONT REACHING KAUAI LATE ON SUNDAY... OAHU AND MAUI COUNTY SUNDAY NIGHT...AND STALLING NEAR THE BIG ISLAND ON MONDAY. HAVE MADE ONLY VERY MINOR TWEAKS TO THE POP GRIDS...WHICH SEEM TO BE IN GOOD AGREEMENT OVERALL WITH MOS GUIDANCE. HAVE MAINTAINED THE WIND SPEED GRIDS...ALONG WITH THE GUSTS. THESE LOOK GOOD...INCLUDING THE GUSTS UP TO 35 OR 40 MPH IN LOCALIZED AREAS OF NORMALLY WINDWARD SECTIONS OF KAUAI AND OAHU. A GAP IN THE PARADE OF LOWS TO THE NORTH WILL ALLOW THE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE TO BUILD BACK NORTH OF THE ISLANDS LATER MONDAY INTO TUESDAY...ALONG WITH PROVIDING RISING HEIGHTS ALOFT. THE SURFACE RIDGE IS THEN EXPECTED TO RETURN TO THE ISLAND VICINITY AND REMAIN IN PLACE THROUGH MUCH OF THE WEEK...WITH PERHAPS ANOTHER WEAK FRONTAL EPISODE LATE IN THE WEEK...ABOUT FRIDAY. OTHER THAN SOME LINGERING SHOWERS NEAR THE BIG ISLAND...WE WILL LIKELY SETTLE BACK INTO A GENERALLY DRY OR WEAK CONVECTIVE PATTERN TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. && .MARINE... THE OTHER BIG STORY IS THE NORTHWEST SWELL. THE LATEST BUMP IS ON THE DECLINE...BUT ANOTHER NORTHWEST SWELL WILL ARRIVE LATE TONIGHT AND LIKELY PEAK ON MONDAY. BECAUSE OF PROBLEMS WITH HANDLING THE STRENGTH OF THE WINDS OVER THE NORTH PACIFIC...THE WAVEWATCH III HAS BEEN WAFFLING A LOT ON THE SIZE AND PERIOD OF THE ENERGY REACHING THE ISLANDS. IT STILL LOOKS LIKE SURF WILL REACH WARNING LEVELS FOR SOME NORTH AND WEST FACING LOCATIONS STARTING MONDAY. THE COMBINATION OF STRONG KONA WINDS FOR THE NORTHERN WATERS...AND INCREASING SEAS...NECESSITATES SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES FOR MOST OF THE COASTAL WATERS. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH SURF ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM HST MONDAY FOR NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM HST MONDAY FOR MOST HAWAIIAN WATERS...ESPECIALLY THOSE WATERS EXPOSED TO LARGE NORTHWEST SWELLS...BUT ALSO INCLUDING WATERS AROUND KAUAI AND OAHU WHERE WEST TO SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE THROUGH SUNDAY. && FARRELL
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strong Wind, Olomana | 2005-12-18 | 1 | Female | Under Tree | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, December 2005
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: 5484864.