Heavy Rain, Hawaii
- When
- February 19, 1:41 AM HST to 8:53 AM HST
- Where
- Hawaii County, 3.99 mi SE of Kukuihaele to 2.78 mi WSW of Kapoho
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 20.082, -155.534
Winter Storm and Heavy Rain in Hawaii, February 19 to 22, 2012
An upper low brought heavy showers and winter weather to the Big island of Hawaii. Snow and freezing rain fell over the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
- 3
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.
An upper low brought heavy showers and winter weather to the Big island of Hawaii. Snow and freezing rain fell over the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. 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 19, 1:20 AM HST, 21 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 19, 1:20 AM HST, 21 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 120 AM HST SUN FEB 19 2012 UPDATED AVIATION SECTION .SYNOPSIS... TRADE WINDS WILL REMAIN BREEZY THROUGH THE WEEKEND...WITH ENHANCED SHOWERS RIDING THE TRADE WINDS. RAINFALL WILL FOCUS OVER WINDWARD AREAS...WITH SOME SHOWERS OCCURRING OVER LEEWARD LOCATIONS AS WELL. WINDS WILL DECREASE EARLY IN THE WEEK BUT ENHANCED SHOWERS WILL REMAIN INTO WEDNESDAY. EXPECT DRIER TRADE WIND CONDITIONS FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE WEEK. && .DISCUSSION... CURRENTLY...RELATIVELY STRONG HIGH PRESSURE /1034 MB/ CENTERED ABOUT 1150 MILES TO THE NE IS PROVIDING BRISK TRADE WINDS TO THE ISLANDS AND SURROUNDING WATERS. A CLOSED LOW ALOFT...SEEN ON WATER VAPOR IMAGERY TO BE CENTERED SW OF THE ISLANDS...ROUGHLY NEAR 19N 160W...IS NEARLY STATIONARY....AND HAS BROUGHT COLDER THAN NORMAL TEMPERATURES TO THE MID AND UPPER ATMOSPHERE...ALLOWING FOR MODERATE ATMOSPHERIC INSTABILITY. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING ABOUT 350 MILES S OF THE BIG ISLAND...WHERE INSTABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE LOW IS INTERACTING WITH AN AREA OF ENHANCED LOW LEVEL MOISTURE. BROKEN TO OVERCAST HIGH CLOUDS...ASSOCIATED WITH THE LOW ALOFT... COVER THE ISLANDS FROM OAHU TO THE BIG ISLAND. RADAR DEPICTS SCATTERED SHOWERS OVER THE ISLANDS AND NEAR SHORE WATERS...MOVING QUICKLY W WITH THE LOW LEVEL TRADE FLOW. FINAL VISIBLE IMAGES OF THE DAY REVEALED A WNW TO ESE ORIENTED BAND OF SHOWERY CUMULUS /CU/ ABOUT 100 TO 150 MILES E OF THE ISLANDS FROM OAHU TO THE BIG ISLAND...MOVING W NEAR 30 MPH...WITH SOME OF THE SHOWERS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS LINE JUST NOW BEING DETECTED BY RADAR ABOUT 125 MILES E OF WINDWARD MAUI. FOR TONIGHT...GFS AND ECMWF BOTH DEPICT INCREASING MOISTURE MOVING OVER THE ISLANDS FROM THE E...APPROXIMATING THE LINE OF OBSERVED SHOWERY CU IN A REALISTIC MANNER. WITH THE UPPER LOW IN PLACE...THESE SHOWERS MAY BE BRIEFLY HEAVY OVER WINDWARD PORTIONS OF THE ISLANDS...WITH LESS INTENSE SHOWERS CARRIED LEEWARD BY THE STRONG TRADES ON THE SMALLER ISLANDS. MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH SOME OF THESE SHOWERS EXTENDS AS HIGH AS 25 THOUSAND FEET...BASED ON RADAR ECHO TOPS AND SATELLITE ESTIMATES...AND WHILE SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL IS NOT EXPECTED OVER THE UPPER SLOPES AND SUMMITS OF THE BIG ISLAND...THIS MOISTURE IS EXPECTED TO COMBINE WITH SUB-FREEZING TEMPERATURES TO BRING FREEZING RAIN...AND A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT. WITH SUCH A COLD POCKET ALOFT IN PLACE...TEMPERATURES OVER HALEAKALA ARE CURRENTLY JUST ABOVE FREEZING...AND FREEZING RAIN OVER HALEAKALA SUMMIT CANNOT BE RULED OUT LATER TONIGHT. WILL MONITOR OBS TO MAKE A DETERMINATION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THE HALEAKALA ZONE SHOULD BE ADDED TO THE WINTER STORM WARNING. MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH THE APPROACHING BAND OF SHOWERS IS EXPECTED TO CLEAR THE ISLANDS BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON AS TRADE WINDS REMAIN STRONG. THE TRADE WINDS WILL DROP A NOTCH ON MONDAY OVER THE SMALLER ISLANDS...AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHING FROM THE NW DECREASES THE PRESSURE GRADIENT W OF THE ISLANDS...AND TURNS WINDS TO THE ESE. MODERATE TO FRESH TRADE WINDS WILL REMAIN THROUGH MOST OF THE WEEK...ESPECIALLY OVER WATERS E OF THE ISLANDS...AS THE FRONT WEAKENS AND HIGH PRESSURE PASSES N OF THE ISLANDS. LATEST MODEL RUNS...HOWEVER...DEPICT SOME WEAKENING OF THE TRADES TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK. THE HIGH LEVEL LOW IS FORECAST TO DRIFT E...MOVING OVER THE BIG ISLAND ON SUNDAY...AND E OF THE ISLANDS MONDAY AND TUESDAY...WHILE THE MID LEVEL LOW LINGERS S OF THE BIG ISLAND. END RESULT WILL BE A TREND TOWARD TYPICAL TRADE WIND WEATHER OVER THE SMALLER ISLANDS... WITH A WETTER THAN NORMAL TRADE WIND WEATHER PATTERN OVER THE BIG ISLAND. LONG RANGE OUTLOOK SHOWS ANOTHER LOW ALOFT DEVELOPING NEAR THE ISLANDS BY NEXT WEEKEND...POTENTIALLY BRINGING WETTER WEATHER. && .AVIATION... VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO PREVAIL AT THE LEEWARD TERMINALS... BUT MVFR CIG/VIS...AND ISOL IFR CIG/VIS...WILL AFFECT WINDWARD SLOPES OF ALL ISLANDS...AND WINDWARD TERMINALS LIKE PHTO AND PHLI. AIRMET TANGO IS IN PLACE FOR LOW LEVEL TURB TO THE S AND W OF THE MTS OF ALL ISLANDS...DUE TO STRONG TRADE WINDS. AIRMET SIERRA HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR MT OBSC ON MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND...AND AIRMET ZULU IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR AREAS AROUND MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND...FOR LIGHT TO MODERATE RIME ICING. && .MARINE... STRONG TRADE WINDS AND ASSOCIATED SEAS HAVE PROMPTED A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY /SCA/ FOR ALL WATERS. THE MOKAPU BUOY E OF OAHU IS REPORTING COMBINED SEAS NEAR 10 FT...WITH A PRIMARY PERIOD NEAR 9 SECONDS...AND SHORT-PERIOD SURF IS INCREASING ALONG E FACING SHORES...WHERE A HIGH SURF ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT. ALTHOUGH TRADES ARE EXPECTED TO EASE OVER AND W OF THE ISLANDS EARLY IN THE NEW WEEK...A LONG FETCH OF TRADE WINDS TO THE E WILL MAINTAIN SHORT PERIOD TRADE SWELL FOR MUCH OF THE WEEK...WITH LATEST WWIII GUIDANCE INDICATING THAT COMBINED SEAS WILL STAY ABOVE THE 10 FT SCA CRITERION UNTIL FRIDAY. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH SURF ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM HST SUNDAY FOR EAST FACING SHORES OF KAUAI OAHU MOLOKAI MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND. WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 AM HST MONDAY FOR BIG ISLAND SUMMITS. WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST SUNDAY FOR HALEAKALA SUMMIT. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM HST SUNDAY FOR ALL HAWAIIAN WATERS. && BIRCHARD
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 winter storm, 1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Storm, Big Island Summit
- When
- February 19, 5:00 AM HST to February 20, 9:32 AM HST
- Where
- Big Island Summit forecast zone
- Reported by
- Park/Forest Service
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Up to six inches of snow fell, with drifts to a foot.
Winter Storm, Big Island Summit
- When
- February 21, 7:10 AM HST to February 22, 10:11 AM HST
- Where
- Big Island Summit forecast zone
- Reported by
- Park/Forest Service
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Snow and freezing rain affected the summits.
What these are
- Heavy Rain
- Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
- 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
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Kentucky, February 19, 2012
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, February 19, 2012
- Heavy Snow in Virginia, February 19, 2012
- Winter Storm in Virginia, February 19 to 20, 2012
- Winter Weather in Virginia, February 19 to 20, 2012
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Tennessee, February 19, 2012
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Colorado, February 19 to 20, 2012
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, February 19, 2012
- Winter Weather in North Carolina, February 19, 2012
- Marine Thunderstorm Winds in South Atlantic Coastal Waters, February 19, 2012
- Winter Storm in Virginia, February 19 to 20, 2012
- High Surf in Hawaii, February 19 to 23, 2012
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, February 2012
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: 360466, 360467, 360468.