A weakening cold front pushing south near the Hawaiian Islands generated heavy showers over east and southeast parts of Kauai. The conditions were severe enough to cause flash flooding.
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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 weakening cold front pushing south near the Hawaiian Islands generated heavy showers over east and southeast parts of Kauai. The conditions were severe enough to cause flash flooding. No serious injuries were reported. The costs of damages, of anything significant, 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 3, 4:00 AM HST, 2 hours earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 400 AM HST FRI DEC 3 2010 .SYNOPSIS... A STRONG HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM FAR NORTH OF THE STATE WILL BRING STRONG TRADE WINDS ACROSS THE ISLANDS THROUGH TONIGHT AND DECREASING THIS WEEKEND. A COLD FRONT IS CURRENTLY MOVING ACROSS THE STATE THIS MORNING TOWARDS THE SOUTHWEST...PRODUCING FREQUENT SHOWERS...SOME OF THEM HEAVY AT TIMES. THE FRONT WILL WEAKEN AND MOVE OFF THE ISLANDS BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. EXPECT DECREASING SHOWERS THROUGH THE DAY AS A DRIER AND STABLE AIRMASS FILTERING IN THIS EVENING WHICH WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THE RIDGE TO THE NORTH WILL WEAKEN RAPIDLY EARLY NEXT WEEK...WITH TRADES DECREASING TO LIGHT TO MODERATE LEVELS. && .DISCUSSION... WINDY CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TODAY AND TONIGHT DRIVEN BY A STRONG HIGH CENTERED FAR TO THE NORTH OF THE STATE. A COLD FRONT IS CURRENTLY MOVING ACROSS THE STATE THIS MORNING. IT IS ADVANCING TOWARDS THE WEST-SOUTHWEST AHEAD OF A DRY AND STABLE AIRMASS. THE PRESSURE GRADIENT IS HOLDING STEADY BETWEEN BUOYS 51000 AND 51002 AT AROUND A 7.0 MB DIFFERENCE. THE WINDS ARE CURRENTLY AT THEIR PEAK ACROSS THE STATE THIS MORNING AS THE GRADIENT IS TIGHTEST ALONG THE FRONT. THE WINDS WILL REMAIN STRONG THROUGH TONIGHT...DECREASING TO FRESH TO LOCALLY STRONG BY SATURDAY MORNING AND GRADUALLY WEAKENING BACK TO MODERATE LEVELS THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEKEND. A WIND ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE WINDIER AREAS OF MAUI COUNTY AND THE BIG ISLAND THROUGH FRIDAY. WINDS AFFECTING THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS ARE A LITTLE BIT WEAKER AS SHOWN FROM AUTOMATED OBSERVATIONS AND THE 12Z SOUNDING AT HILO...SO HAVE CANCELLED THE ADVISORY FOR HALEAKALA SUMMIT AND THE BIG ISLAND INTERIOR. FREQUENT TRADE WIND SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THIS MORNING....SOME OF THEM PRODUCING HEAVY RAINFALL AT TIMES ESPECIALLY FOR WINDWARD AND MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS. GIVEN THE STRONG TRADE WINDS ...MANY OF THE SHOWERS WILL CARRY ONTO LEEWARD SIDES. THE FRONT WILL WEAKEN AND MOVE OFF THE ISLANDS BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON....THOUGH A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN AROUND THE AREA THROUGH THE AFTERNOON HOURS. A DRY AND STABLE AIRMASS WILL FILTER IN THIS EVENING WHICH WILL PRODUCE MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES AND LITTLE RAINFALL SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE RIDGE TO THE NORTH WILL WEAKEN RAPIDLY EARLY NEXT WEEK...WITH TRADES DECREASING TO LIGHT TO MODERATE LEVELS. THERE IS ALSO SUFFICIENT CLOUD DEPTH TO PRODUCE SOME FREEZING DRIZZLE THIS MORNING ABOVE 11000 FEET ON THE BIG ISLAND SUMMITS AND HAVE A SLIGHT CHANCE OF FREEZING DRIZZLE IN THE FORECAST THERE. MEDIUM AND LONG RANGE MODELS ARE IN GOOD OVERALL AGREEMENT WITH VEERING WINDS TO THE SOUTHEAST BEGINNING SUNDAY AND EVENTUALLY SOUTH BY TUESDAY NIGHT. FOR SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...A MUCH DRIER AND STABLE AIRMASS WILL REMAIN IN PLACE OVER THE STATE AS THE SURFACE RIDGE WEAKENS FURTHER AND SLIPS SOUTH AND EAST OF THE AREA WITH WINDS VEERING TO MORE SOUTHERLY BY LATE TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. UNDER THIS SCENARIO...THE THREAT OF SHOWERS WILL INCREASE BY THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. HAVE UNDERCUT GUIDANCE POPS AND GONE WITH A CHANCE OF SHOWERS PRETTY MUCH STATE-WIDE ALLOWING FOR FUTURE SHIFTS TO TREND POPS UP IF GOOD MODEL AGREEMENT CONTINUES. && .AVIATION... STRONG HIGH PRES N OF THE AREA WILL MAINTAIN 15-30KT TRADES ACROSS THE AREA WITH STRONGER WINDS THRU RIDGES AND OVER MOUNTAINS. A DISSIPATING CDFNT OVER THE STATE WILL BRING TEMPO MVFR CONDITIONS TO WINDWARD AREAS TODAY. THE TRADES WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE LLVL TURB LEE OF THE MT. && .MARINE... TRADES WINDS WILL REMAIN STRONG INTO SATURDAY MORNING BEFORE DECLINING FOR THE REST OF THE WEEKEND. A GALE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE WINDIER WATERS AROUND THE ISLAND OF MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND THROUGH LATE THIS AFTERNOON. THE GALE WARNINGS WILL EITHER BE EXTENDED FOR TONIGHT OR REPLACED WITH SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES FOR THOSE AFFECTED ZONES. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES HAVE BEEN EXTENDED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE HAWAIIAN COASTAL WATERS THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING. THE CHOPPY TRADE SWELL WILL RESULT IN HIGH SURF ADVISORY LEVEL SURF ALONG EAST FACING SHORES OF ALL ISLANDS THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GALE WARNING UNTIL 6 PM HST THIS EVENING FOR MAALAEA BAY-PAILOLO CHANNEL-ALENUIHAHA CHANNEL-BIG ISLAND LEEWARD WATERS-BIG ISLAND SOUTHEAST WATERS. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST SATURDAY FOR ALL OTHER COASTAL WATERS. HIGH SURF ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST SATURDAY FOR FOR EAST FACING SHORES OF NIIHAU...KAUAI...OAHU...MOLOKAI...MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND. WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM HST THIS EVENING FOR LANAI-KAHOOLAWE- MAUI LEEWARD WEST-MAUI CENTRAL VALLEY-LEEWARD HALEAKALA-SOUTH BIG ISLAND-BIG ISLAND NORTH AND EAST-KOHALA. && DISCUSSION/MARINE...FOSTER AVIATION...MORRISON
The South Kauai radar (PHKI), 28 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 16:00 UTC.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
A canoe club became flooded in the lower Wailua River area as heavy rains fell across eastern parts of Kauai.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, December 2010
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: 267428.