Winter Storm in Hawaii, February 1 to 5, 2005

Name: Winter Storm in Hawaii, February 1 to 5, 2005
Start: 2005-02-01T04:00
End: 2005-02-05T15:30
Location: Hawaii

February 1 to 5, 2005 · NWS HFO · 1 event in 1 county or zone

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.

Moist and persistent unstable weather conditions brought 8 to 16 inches of snow to the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawaii. Occasional winds above 40 mph dropped visibilities below a quarter mile for two to three hour periods over several days. Snow drifts were as high as six feet in some places. Traveling was impossible for a day or two as work crews could not keep up with the falling and drifting snow on the roadways leading to the summits. However, there were no reports of serious property damage or injuries.

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 Feb 1, 4:00 AM HST, 0 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 1, 4:00 AM HST, 0 minutes before

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
400 AM HST TUE FEB 1 2005

.SYNOPSIS...
A COLD FRONT IN THE VICINITY OF KAUAI AND AN UNSTABLE AIRMASS OVER
THE STATE WILL PRODUCE SHOWERS AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS
THE STATE TODAY. EXCESSIVE RAINFALL AND FLASH FLOODING IS POSSIBLE
THROUGH MIDWEEK. A TROUGH BOTH AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT WILL LINGER
THROUGH THE LATTER HALF OF THIS WEEK...MAINTAINING THE THREAT OF
SHOWERS AND PERHAPS HEAVY SHOWERS. A GRADUAL DRYING TREND WILL START
FRIDAY NIGHT...WITH TRADES BECOMING ESTABLISHED OVER THE WEEKEND.

&&

.DISCUSSION..
THE WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN NOTED THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE NIGHT HAVE
DIMINISHED IN COVERAGE...BUT POCKETS OF HEAVY RAIN AND ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER MAUI AND HAVE STARTED TO AFFECT THE KONA
COAST OF THE BIG ISLAND. MODERATE SHOWERS ARE FALLING FROM KAUAI
THROUGH MOLOKAI AND LANAI. ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ARE STILL FAIRLY
UNSTABLE...SO THE THREAT FOR FUTURE HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
REMAINS. 2 AM SOUNDINGS INDICATE FREEZING LEVEL AROUND 12000 FEET
OR SO...AND WITH INCREASED MOISTURE MOVING IN HAVE UPGRADED THE
WINTER STORM WATCH TO AN WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THE SUMMITS OF
THE BIG ISLANDS THROUGH WEDNESDAY. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY REVEALS A
SHORTWAVE FORMING WEST OF 170W...IN AGREEMENT WITH MODEL FORECASTS.
THIS SHORTWAVE IS EXPECTED TO DEEPEN THE PRE EXISTING TROUGH OVER
THE ISLANDS STARTING LATE TODAY. THE TROUGH WILL PEAK IN STRENGTH
WEDNESDAY BEFORE STARTING TO FILL IN. THIS UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL
LINGER FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK...WHILE A TROUGH FORMS AT THE
SURFACE. HAVE INCREASED THE POPS FOR THE LATTER HALF OF THE WEEK TO
TAKE THIS INTO ACCOUNT. NOT TILL FRIDAY NIGHT DOES THE UPPER TROUGH
BEGIN TO LIFT OUT TOWARD THE NORTHEAST. AT THE SAME TIME...THE
SURFACE TROUGH WILL BE NUDGED EASTWARD BY BUILDING HIGH PRESSURE
NORTHWEST OF THE ISLANDS. SO ITS POSSIBLE WE MAY SEE TRADES FOR A
BIT OVER THE WEEKEND AND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. LONGER RANGE MODELS
ARE ADVERTISING ANOTHER FRONT TOWARD THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. THE
RECAP IS...WET WEATHER FOR MOST IF NOT ALL OF THIS WEEK...DRIER OVER
THE WEEKEND AND INTO NEXT WEEK...THEN POSSIBLE FRONTAL PASSAGE
MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK.

&&

.MARINE...
DATA FROM THE BUOY 51001 NORTHWEST OF KAUAI AND THE
WAIMEA BUOY REVEALS THE NORTHWEST SWELL CONTINUES TO DECLINE.
COMPUTES INDICATE THAT SURF HEIGHTS HAVE FALLEN BELOW ADVISORY
LEVELS. ALL HIGH SURF ADVISORIES ARE THEREFORE CANCELLED.

&&

.HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR ALL ISLANDS THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR BIG ISLAND SUMMITS THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

&&

TANABE

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Big Island Summit

When: February 1, 4:00 AM HST to February 5, 3:30 PM HST
Where: Big Island Summit forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Hawaii in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, February 2005

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: 5441453.