Flash Flood, Kauai
- When
- March 9, 3:45 PM HST to March 10, 12:00 AM HST
- Where
- Kauai County, 10 mi WSW of Hanalei
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 22.150, -159.633
Flash Flood in Hawaii, March 9 to 10, 2006
Heavy showers and isolated thunderstorms over northern parts of Kauai caused the Hanalei River to overflow its banks near the Hanalei Bridge. This forced the closure of Kuhio Highway until the river returned to its normal course.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. 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 and isolated thunderstorms over northern parts of Kauai caused the Hanalei River to overflow its banks near the Hanalei Bridge. This forced the closure of Kuhio Highway until the river returned to its normal course. No serious property damage or 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 Mar 9, 9:10 AM HST, 6 hours 35 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Mar 9, 9:10 AM HST, 6 hours 35 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 910 AM HST THU MAR 9 2006 .SYNOPSIS... THE THREAT OF HEAVY RAINFALL AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE DAY FRIDAY AS A SURFACE TROUGH LINGERS WEST OF KAUAI. EAST SOUTHEAST WINDS WILL GRADUALLY BECOME EAST NORTHEAST TRADES BY SUNDAY AS THE TROUGH MOVES AWAY...STARTING A PERIOD OF DRIER WEATHER WHICH WILL LAST THROUGH THE REST OF THE FORECAST PERIOD. && .DISCUSSION... DEEP SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH FLOW ASSOCIATED WITH A DEEP LAYER LOW NEAR 35N 175W IS LOCKED OVER THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS...WITH A CONVERGENT LOW LEVEL FLOW PRODUCING EXTENSIVE AREAS OF RAIN...WITH EMBEDDED HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. AN ESPECIALLY LARGE AREA OF CONVECTION IS SEEN ABOUT 40 TO 100 MILES SOUTH OF KAUAI THIS MORNING MOVING NORTH NEAR 20 MPH...WITH A SOLID LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS NOTED AT ITS LEADING EDGE. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY HIGHLIGHTS A SHORT WAVE TROUGH AXIS ALONG 165W NEAR 22N...WHICH MAY BE HELPING TO INCITE THIS CONVECTION...AND MAY PLAY A ROLE IN SHORT TERM CONVECTIVE EVOLUTION OVER THE WESTERN ISLANDS TODAY AND TONIGHT. CONVECTION OVER AND NEAR THE BIG ISLAND /ALL ISLANDS ACTUALLY/ EXTENDS THROUGH A GOOD DEPTH OF THE TROPOSPHERE...WITH WINTRY WEATHER OCCURRING ON THE HIGHEST SLOPES OF MAUNA KEA AND MAUNA LOA. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED. ALTHOUGH THE PARENT LOW TO THE NORTHWEST IS PROGGED TO MOVE RAPIDLY NORTH OVER THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS...A LINGERING LOW LEVEL TROUGH IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN PLACE JUST WEST OF KAUAI...WITH THE MOST AGGRESSIVE GFS DEVELOPING A SURFACE LOW ALONG THE TROUGH AXIS...WITH THE LOW MOVING NORTH. REGARDLESS OF THE DETAILS...THE TROUGHING WEST OF THE ISLANDS WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE LOW LEVEL MOISTURE CONVERGENCE OVER THE ISLANDS...ESPECIALLY OVER THE WESTERN ISLANDS. THIS WILL CONTINUE OVER MOST AREAS THROUGH FRIDAY...ALTHOUGH KAUAI MAY STILL BE THREATENED WITH HEAVY RAIN INTO SATURDAY. THE LOW/TROUGH WEAKENS AND MOVES WEST LATER THIS WEEKEND...ALLOWING FOR A DRYING TREND. LONGER RANGE PROGS INDICATE STEADY TRADES...BUT NO SIGNIFICANT RAIN MAKERS AFTER THIS WEEKEND. HOWEVER...A STRONG STABILIZING RIDGE IS NOT SEEN...SO TRADES WILL LIKELY BRING A FEW WINDWARD SHOWERS...BUT NOT AS INTENSE OR AS WIDESPREAD AS CURRENTLY. && MARINE... A HIGH SURF ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR EAST FACING SHORES DUE TO THE PRESENCE OF STRONG WINDS OFFSHORE TO THE EAST PRODUCING SEAS AND SWELLS THAT WILL RESULT IN SURF EXCEEDING ADVISORY CRITERIA. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FLASH FLOOD WATCH...ALL HAWAIIAN ISLANDS THROUGH 6 AM FRIDAY. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR STRONG E/SE WINDS BIG ISLAND SOUTHEAST... BIG ISLAND WINDWARD...MAUI WINDWARD...OAHU WINDWARD...KAUAI WINDWARD WATERS THROUGH FRIDAY AFTERNOON. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY...BIG ISLAND SUMMITS THROUGH 6 AM FRIDAY. && BIRCHARD
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
- Tornado and Hail in Arkansas, March 9, 2006
- Lightning Strike in Arkansas, March 9, 2006
- Strong Wind in Louisiana, March 9, 2006
- Damaging Winds in Mississippi, March 9, 2006
- Flash Flood in Missouri, March 9, 2006
- Flash Flood in Kentucky, March 9, 2006
- Avalanche and Heavy Snow in Utah, March 9 to 13, 2006
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Mississippi, March 9, 2006
- Tornado and Hail in Mississippi, March 9, 2006
- Damaging Wind in Mississippi, March 9, 2006
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 9, 2006
- Damaging Winds and High Wind in Kentucky, March 9, 2006
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, March 2006
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: 5495535.