A strong high far north of the state produced sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph, and gusts as high as 50 mph, over all the islands. In one instance, a woman in her 60s was hit by a falling branch on Oahu and critically injured.
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 high far north of the state produced sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph, and gusts as high as 50 mph, over all the islands. In one instance, a woman in her 60s was hit by a falling branch on Oahu and critically injured. She later died. On the Big Island, a 100 foot by 40 foot section of the Kau High School roof was damaged. 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 Feb 26, 10:00 AM HST, 1 hour 10 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 1000 AM HST THU FEB 26 2009 .SYNOPSIS... A HIGH FAR NORTH OF THE AREA WILL KEEP BREEZY TRADE WINDS BLOWING OVER THE ISLANDS THROUGH NEXT WEEK. WITH THE TRADE WINDS BLOWING...SHOWERS WILL BE FOCUSED OVER THE WINDWARD SLOPES WITH A FEW SHOWERS SPREADING LEEWARD ON THE SMALLER ISLANDS. && .DISCUSSION... BREEZY TRADES ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN OVER THE ISLAND INTO THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. A STRONG 1048 MB HIGH PRESSURE SITUATED FAR NORTH OF THE STATE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WINDS...AND WEATHER MODELS SHOW THE HIGH FIRMLY ENTRENCHED TO THE NORTH THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. WITH FRESH TO STRONG TRADE WINDS BLOWING...RAINFALL WILL REMAIN FOCUSED OVER THE WINDWARD AREAS WITH THE OCCASIONAL SHOWER BLOWING OVER TO LEEWARD LOCATIONS ON THE SMALLER ISLANDS. WINDS WILL BE STRONGEST OVER AND AROUND HILLS...HEADLANDS AND RIDGES...SUCH AS THE KOOLAU MOUNTAINS...WAIANAE FOOTHILLS AND PARTS OF NORTH KOHALA ON THE BIG ISLAND. SIMILAR TO YESTERDAY IN THESE AREAS...THE WINDS WILL APPROACH ADVISORY CRITERIA WITH GUSTS FROM 40 TO 50 MPH TODAY. ELSEWHERE...MOST AREAS WILL HAVE AT LEAST BREEZY TRADES AT AROUND 20 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN ON THE COOL SIDE OF NORMAL...EXCEPT IN LOCAL SPOTS SUCH AS KONA AND NEAR LAHAINA WHERE DOWNSLOPING WINDS WILL CAUSE SUMMER-LIKE AFTERNOON TEMPERATURE READINGS. THE MODELS CONTINUE TO INDICATE A DEEPENING OF THE TRADES OVER THE WEEKEND AS A MID LEVEL TROUGH PASSES TO OUR SOUTH. THIS MAY RESULT IN WIND SPEEDS REACHING ADVISORY LEVELS AT HALEAKALA SUMMIT AND THE WINDIER SECTIONS OF KOHALA ON THE BIG ISLAND FOR THE WEEKEND. && .MARINE... THE TRADES ARE BRINGING SHORT PERIOD SWELL AND ROUGH SURF TO EAST FACING SHORES OF ALL ISLANDS SO A HIGH SURF ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THOSE AREAS. THE NORTHEASTERLY SWELL DIRECTION ALSO BRINGS THE THREAT FOR MODERATE HARBOR SURGES AT KAHULUI AND HILO HARBORS. A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY WILL LIKELY CONTINUE FOR ALL COASTAL WATERS THROUGH THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS DUE TO STRONG TRADE WINDS AND ROUGH SEAS. THERE IS A CHANCE THAT GALE WARNINGS MAY BE NEEDED FOR WINDIER AREAS IN THE UPCOMING DAYS. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH SURF ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST MONDAY FOR NIIHAU-KAUAI WINDWARD-OAHU KOOLAU-OLOMANA-MOLOKAI-LANAI MAKAI-MAUI WINDWARD WEST-MAUI CENTRAL VALLEY-WINDWARD HALEAKALA-BIG ISLAND NORTH AND EAST. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST MONDAY FOR ALL HAWAIIAN WATERS- && MORRISON
2 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A woman in her 60s was walking along Waimanu Street in Honolulu when she was struck by a falling tree branch. She was critically injured, and later died at the hospital.
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, Oahu South Shore | 2009-02-28 | Female | Under Tree | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, February 2009
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: 149518, 149519.