Drought, Lanai Makai
- When
- January 31, 6:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Lanai Makai forecast zone
- Reported by
- Other Federal Agency
Drought in Hawaii, January 31, 2012
With little rainfall over the month, Lanai reached the D2 level of severe drought on the last day of January.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
- 2
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.
With little rainfall over the month, Lanai reached the D2 level of severe drought on the last day of January.
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 31, 4:00 AM HST, 2 hours earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 31, 4:00 AM HST, 2 hours before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 400 AM HST TUE JAN 31 2012 .SYNOPSIS... TRADE WINDS WILL SLOWLY WEAKEN TODAY AS A FRONT APPROACHES THE ISLANDS FROM THE NORTHWEST. THIS SYSTEM MAY BRING SLIGHTLY STRONGER WINDS BRIEFLY WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY AND POSSIBLY A LITTLE MORE CLOUDS AND SHOWERS FOR THE NORTHERN ISLANDS. A RIDGE WILL MOVE SOUTH ACROSS THE ISLANDS OVER THE WEEKEND...BRINGING LIGHT WINDS AND GENERALLY DRY CONDITIONS. && .DISCUSSION... AN AREA OF LOW CLOUDS IS SPREADING OVER THE SMALLER ISLANDS THIS MORNING...PROVIDING SOME SHOWERS. EXPECT THESE PASSING CLOUDS TO KEEP THE MORNING SKIES A LITTLE CLOUDIER...ESPECIALLY OVER THE WINDWARD AREAS. AIR MASS REMAINS STABLE IN THE ISLAND VICINITY...WHILE A SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE FAR NORTHEAST OF THE STATE CONTINUES TO PROVIDE MODERATE TRADE WINDS. THUS PASSING SHOWERS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE CLOUDS WILL BRING ONLY LIMITED PRECIPITATION. EXPECT MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES FOR MOST ISLANDS BY THE AFTERNOON...AS SOME OF THESE LOW CLOUDS DISSIPATE UNDER THE INSOLATION. A FRONT FAR NORTHWEST OF THE ISLANDS EARLY THIS MORNING WILL ADVANCE CLOSER TO THE STATE IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS AND WEAKEN TO A SHEAR LINE. AS SUCH...THE SURFACE HIGH CURRENTLY FAR NORTHEAST WILL MOVE FURTHER EAST...AWAY FROM THE ISLANDS AND WEAKEN. A DECREASE OF THE TRADE WINDS OVER THE STATE IS EXPECTED THROUGH WEDNESDAY. REMARKABLY...CONSISTENT FORECAST SOLUTION DIFFERENCES CONTINUE TO EXIST BETWEEN MODELS...WITH THE EUROPEAN MODEL HAS THIS SHEAR LINE JUST REACHING KAUAI EARLY THURSDAY AND DISSIPATING...WHILE GFS CONTINUES TO STALL THIS SHEAR LINE NORTH OF KAUAI. BOTH MODELS DO HINT A POSSIBLE INCREASE IN THE MOISTURE FOR THE ISLANDS LATE WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY...AS WELL AS A SLIGHT UPTICK IN THE WINDS ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. HENCE HAVE KEPT FORECAST PACKAGE SLIGHTLY WETTER FOR LATE WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY AT THIS TIME...ESPECIALLY FOR KAUAI. A SURFACE RIDGE IS NOW EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS THE ISLANDS OVER THE WEEKEND...WITH WESTERLY WINDS DEVELOPING OVER THE STATE BY EARLY NEXT WEEK. LOOK FOR GENERALLY DRY CONDITIONS ACROSS THE STATE OVER THE WEEKEND...WITH LOCAL LAND AND SEA BREEZES...AND AFTERNOON INTERIOR CLOUDS DEVELOPING UNDER THE WEAK WIND REGIME. && .AVIATION... AN AIRMET FOR LOW LEVEL TURBULENCE OVER AND IMMEDIATE DOWNWIND OF THE ISLANDS CONTINUES AS MODERATE TRADE WINDS PERSIST. && .MARINE... THE VERY LARGE NORTHWEST SWELL MAY HAVE PEAKED OVERNIGHT ON OAHU...THOUGH SURF WILL REMAIN QUITE LARGE FOR THE NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES OF THE NORTHERN ISLANDS AND EVEN THE KONA WEST FACING SHORES OF THE BIG ISLAND. A HIGH SURF WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES OF NIIHAU KAUAI OAHU AND MOLOKAI...AND NORTH FACING SHORES OF MAUI...WHILE A HIGH SURF ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR KONA WEST FACING SHORES OF THE BIG ISLAND. THIS SWELL EPISODE WILL SLOWLY SUBSIDE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. THE STILL MODERATE TRADE WINDS TODAY AND THE LARGE NORTHWEST SWELL WILL PRODUCE HAZARDOUS WINDS AND/OR SEAS ACROSS THE HAWAIIAN WATERS...BRINGING SMALL CRAFT CONDITIONS FOR ALL COASTAL WATERS. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH SURF WARNING UNTIL 6 PM HST TUESDAY FOR NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES OF NIIHAU...KAUAI...OAHU AND MOLOKAI AND NORTH FACING SHORES OF MAUI. HIGH SURF ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM HST TUESDAY FOR KONA WEST FACING SHORES OF THE BIG ISLAND. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM HST WEDNESDAY FOR ALL HAWAIIAN WATERS && HUI
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Drought, Lanai Mauka
- When
- January 31, 6:00 AM HST to 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Lanai Mauka forecast zone
- Reported by
- Other Federal Agency
- Coordinates
- 21.027, -156.788 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Drought
- A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, January 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: 357477, 357478.