High Surf, Niihau
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Niihau forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf in Hawaii, January 31, 2011
A swell from a storm low passing north of the islands generated surf of 15 to 25 feet along the north- and west-facing shores of Niihau and Kauai; and the north-facing shores of Oahu, Molokai, and Maui; 10 to 15 feet along the north-facing shores of the Big Island of Hawaii; and 8 to 12 feet along the west-facing shores of Oahu and the Big Island. No serious injuries or property damage were…
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 7 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 14
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.
A swell from a storm low passing north of the islands generated surf of 15 to 25 feet along the north- and west-facing shores of Niihau and Kauai; and the north-facing shores of Oahu, Molokai, and Maui; 10 to 15 feet along the north-facing shores of the Big Island of Hawaii; and 8 to 12 feet along the west-facing shores of Oahu and the Big Island. No serious injuries or property damage 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 Jan 30, 8:34 PM HST, 6 hours 26 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 30, 8:34 PM HST, 6 hours 26 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 834 PM HST SUN JAN 30 2011 .SYNOPSIS... A COLD FRONT WILL WEAKEN OVER THE BIG ISLAND TONIGHT. HIGH PRESSURE WILL FOLLOW THE FRONT AND GENERATE MODERATE TRADES FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THE WEEK. ANOTHER FRONT WILL APPROACH NEXT WEEKEND AND CAUSE WIND FLOW OUT OF THE SOUTHEAST THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. && .DISCUSSION... A WEAKENING COLD FRONT ACROSS THE STATE IS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH AND IS CURRENTLY OVER MAUI COUNTY THIS EVENING. PRE-FRONTAL SHOWERS THAT WERE PRESENT ACROSS THE EASTERN SIDE OF MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND LATE THIS AFTERNOON HAVE ALMOST DISSIPATED. RAINFALL AMOUNTS HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY LIGHT OVERALL WITH THIS FRONTAL SYSTEM...BUT BETTER MID/UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT FROM A TROUGH ALOFT PROVIDED A BIT MORE ROBUST SHOWERS EARLIER TODAY OVER MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND. THE FRONT IS EXPECTED IS SLOW AND DISSIPATE OVERNIGHT NEAR THE BIG ISLAND. SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO STICK AROUND MAUI THIS EVENING AND THE BIG ISLAND TONIGHT. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH A BUILDING HIGH OVER THE STATE WILL USHER IN DRIER AND SLIGHTLY COOLER AIR TONIGHT. HAVE LOWERED TEMPERATURES OVER THE ISLANDS FROM THE PREVIOUS FORECAST PACKAGE...PARTICULARLY KAUAI AND OAHU WHICH SHOULD HAVE THE LEAST AMOUNT OF CLOUDS TONIGHT. WINDS WILL REMAIN NEAR MODERATE LEVELS SLOWLY VEERING EASTERLY MONDAY AS THE HIGH DRIFTS TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE STATE. REMNANT MOISTURE FROM THE FRONT MAY BLOW BACK ONTO THE WINDWARD SIDE OF THE BIG ISLAND TOMORROW AS THE WINDS VEER EASTERLY...WHICH COULD PROVIDE CONTINUED SHOWERS FOR MONDAY THERE. A BUILDING RIDGE ALOFT...COUPLED WITH THE DRIER AIRMASS SHOULD KEEP THE SMALLER ISLANDS...AND LEEWARD BIG ISLAND DRY MONDAY AND TUESDAY. WINDS WILL BEGIN VEERING SOUTHEAST ON WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY AS ANOTHER COLD FRONT APPROACHES AND BEGINS TO INFLUENCE THE SYNOPTIC WIND FLOW OVER THE STATE. A WEAK SURFACE TROUGH DEVELOPING EAST OF THE BIG ISLAND MAY ALSO USHER A SLIGHT UPTICK IN SHOWERS ACROSS WINDWARD BIG ISLAND WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY. WINDS WILL CONTINUE VEERING SOUTHERLY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AND WILL BECOME GENTLE AND ALLOWING SEA BREEZES TO SET UP. VOLCANIC HAZE MAY ALSO MOVE UP TO THE SMALLER ISLANDS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. THE ARRIVAL OF THE FRONT MAY BE AROUND SATURDAY NIGHT OR SUNDAY ALTHOUGH A STRONGER UPPER TROUGH AND MOISTURE IN THE CONVERGENT SOUTHERLY FLOW IS LIKELY TO BRING IN WEATHER AHEAD OF THE FRONT ITSELF. && .MARINE... POST-FRONTAL MODERATE TO FRESH NORTH WINDS WILL QUICKLY VEER EASTERLY BY MONDAY BUT BELOW THE 25 KNOT SMALL CRAFT THRESHOLD THROUGH MONDAY. A NEW LARGE NORTHWEST SWELL WILL MOVE INTO HAWAIIAN COASTAL WATERS TONIGHT...TOMORROW MORNING AROUND THE BIG ISLAND...BRINGING COMBINED SEAS ABOVE 10 FEET FOR SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES OVER OCEAN AREAS EXPOSED TO THE SWELL. HIGH SURF WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES ARE ALSO IN EFFECT STARTING AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT WITH SHORES EXPOSED TO THIS SWELL. THE SWELL COMES FROM A STRONG STORM PRESENTLY ABOUT 1200 MILES TO THE NORTH-NORTHWEST OF THE ISLANDS BUT GALE FORCE WINDS EXTEND TO NEARLY 300 MILES NORTHWEST OF THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. THEREFORE THIS WILL GENERATE A LARGE RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD SWELL. THE SWELL IN COMBINATION WITH THE POST-FRONTAL TRADE WIND WAVES WILL PRODUCE VERY ROUGH OCEAN CONDITIONS ALONG NORTH AND SOME WEST FACING SHORES. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH SURF WARNING FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 AM HST TUESDAY FOR NIIHAU-KAUAI WINDWARD-KAUAI LEEWARD-OAHU NORTH SHORE-OAHU KOOLAU- MOLOKAI-MAUI WINDWARD WEST-MAUI CENTRAL VALLEY-WINDWARD HALEAKALA. HIGH SURF ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 AM HST TUESDAY FOR WAIANAE COAST. HIGH SURF ADVISORY FROM 6 AM MONDAY TO 6 AM HST TUESDAY FOR BIG ISLAND NORTH AND EAST. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT HST MONDAY NIGHT FOR KAUAI NORTHWEST WATERS-KAUAI WINDWARD WATERS-KAUAI LEEWARD WATERS- KAUAI CHANNEL-OAHU WINDWARD WATERS-KAIWI CHANNEL. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FROM 6 AM MONDAY TO MIDNIGHT HST MONDAY NIGHT FOR MAUI COUNTY WINDWARD WATERS-ALENUIHAHA CHANNEL-BIG ISLAND WINDWARD WATERS. && FOSTER
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
14 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
High Surf, Kauai Windward
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Kauai Windward forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Kauai Leeward
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Kauai Leeward forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 22.011, -159.705 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Waianae Coast
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Waianae Coast forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Oahu North Shore
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Oahu North Shore forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Oahu Koolau
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Oahu Koolau forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Molokai Windward
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Molokai Windward forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Molokai Leeward
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Molokai Leeward forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Maui Windward West
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Maui Windward West forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 21.027, -156.788 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Maui Central Valley
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Maui Central Valley forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Windward Haleakala
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Windward Haleakala forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Big Island North and East
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Big Island North and East forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
High Surf, Kona
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Kona forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Surf, Kohala
- When
- January 31, 3:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Kohala forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- High Surf
- Large waves breaking on the shore that caused damage, erosion or casualties.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Kansas, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Kansas, January 31, 2011
- Cold in New Mexico, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm in Oklahoma, January 31, 2011
- Winter Weather in Kentucky, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm in Missouri, January 31, 2011
- Heavy Snow in New Mexico, January 31, 2011
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 31, 2011
- Extreme Cold in Nebraska, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm in Nebraska, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in South Dakota, January 31, 2011
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Nebraska, January 31, 2011
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, January 2011
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: 274329, 274331, 274332, 274333, 274334, 274335, 274336, 274337, 274338, 274339, 274340, 274341, 277001, 277002.