Power lines and poles, and several trees, were felled by blustery trade winds on the Big Island and Oahu. No serious injuries were reported, however.
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.
Power lines and poles, and several trees, were felled by blustery trade winds on the Big Island and Oahu. No serious injuries were reported, however.
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 Mar 25, 3:50 PM HST, 1 hour 20 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Honolulu HI 350 PM HST Wed Mar 25 2020 .SYNOPSIS... Strong trade winds will continue through Thursday with periods of showers affecting windward and mauka areas, along with occasional leeward spillover. Conditions will trend wetter Thursday night through the weekend as an upper level disturbance moves over the island chain. Some locally heavy rainfall will be possible at times, with thunderstorms not out of the question Friday night through Sunday. Some improvement is possible early next week, although wetter than normal trade wind weather will likely continue, particularly in windward and mauka areas. && .DISCUSSION... Currently at the surface, a 1038 mb high centered around 1200 miles north-northeast of Honolulu is driving breezy to windy trades across the island chain this afternoon. Visible satellite imagery shows partly to mostly cloudy skies, with coverage the greatest in windward areas. Meanwhile radar imagery shows scattered showers moving into windward areas, with some leeward spillover. Main short term concerns revolve around trade wind trends and rain chances during the next couple days. Strong high pressure will gradually weaken as it slides southward during the next couple days, but the gradient will remain rather strong across the island chain. Windy conditions are expected to continue through Thursday, and the Wind Advisory has been extended for Maui County and the Big Island through Thursday afternoon. Winds have dropped below advisory thresholds across Kauai and Oahu, so the advisory has been cancelled here. The trades should ease into the breezy range statewide Thursday night and Friday, as a new high becomes more dominant well north-northwest of the state. An upper level low will drop southward into the western islands Friday night and Saturday, then open up into a trough late in the weekend through early next week. The exact details on how the large scale upper level pattern will evolve remain uncertain, but the general trend suggests a further easing of the trades into the moderate range Saturday through the middle of next week. As for weather details, fairly typical trade wind weather will continue through Thursday, with shower coverage and frequency the highest at night and during the morning hours, particularly over windward and mauka areas. Showers will continue to reach leeward areas at times due to the strength of the trades. The airmass will begin to destabilize Thursday night as an upper level low digs southward towards the island chain. This will elevate inversion heights above 10 kft and result in an increase in trade wind showers area wide. Rather wet weather is then expected Friday through the weekend as the upper level low swings southward over the western islands and gradually opens up into a trough in the vicinity of the central islands by the end of the weekend. Inversion heights should erode completely by Friday night, allowing for the potential for thunderstorms. This potential for thunder will then hold through the weekend, with some locally heavy rainfall possible at times. The trades are expected to continue through the period, so confidence in a widespread heavy rainfall / flash flood threat is not all that high at this time. Showers will continue to favor windward and mauka areas but regular leeward spillover can be expected. Forecast confidence diminishes next week, as the GFS holds more upper level troughing over the islands while the ECMWF shifts the bulk of the upper level energy east of the state. Either way, the pattern appears to favor a wetter than normal trade wind regime, with the GFS being the wetter of the two solutions. && .AVIATION... A 1038 mb high north-northeast of the state will help generate breezy to windy trades across the island chain through Thursday. Moisture below the inversion layer will allow for scattered showers during the next 24 hours, mainly affecting windward areas. These low clouds and showers could cause MVFR conditions. Otherwise, isolated showers will periodically pass over the terrain and into leeward locations. AIRMET SIERRA remains effect for north through east areas on Molokai, Maui, and the Big Island for mountain obscuration above 2500 feet. AIRMET TANGO remains in effect below 9000 feet for areas over and south thru west of mountains on all islands due to tempo moderate turbulence. && .MARINE... A strong high pressure system north-northeast of the islands will keep strong to gale force winds in the forecast across the state through Thursday. The high is forecast to begin weakening late Thursday, which will gradually lower wind speeds into this weekend. The Gale Warning has been extended and is now in effect for the typical windy zones around Maui County and the Big Island through 6 pm HST Thursday. The Small Craft Advisory (SCA) has also been extended for the remaining coastal waters through Thursday night due to winds and seas. The strong winds over and upstream of Hawaii will produce rough surf along east facing shores over the next couple of days. A High Surf Advisory (HSA) has been extended for east facing shores of most islands through Thursday night. Trades are expected to subside some by Friday, which will bring a gradual decrease in surf heights along east facing shores. Latest guidance is indicating borderline High Surf Advisory (HSA) heights Friday through the weekend, thus the HSA will be monitored and will be dependent on readings from the PacIOOS buoys such as Hilo and Mokapu buoys. The current south swell has been on a gradual decline today and will continue to drop over the next few days. Several background south swells should keep small surf along south facing shores through the weekend. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... High Surf Advisory until 6 AM HST Friday for Kauai Windward-Oahu Koolau-Olomana-Molokai Windward-Maui Windward West-Windward Haleakala-South Big Island-Big Island North and East. Wind Advisory until 6 PM HST Thursday for Molokai-Lanai- Kahoolawe-Maui Windward West-Maui Leeward West-Maui Central Valley-Windward Haleakala-Leeward Haleakala-South Big Island-Big Island North and East-Kohala-Big Island Interior. Gale Warning until 6 PM HST Thursday for Maalaea Bay-Pailolo Channel-Alenuihaha Channel-Big Island Leeward Waters-Big Island Southeast Waters. Small Craft Advisory until 6 AM HST Friday for Kauai Northwest Waters-Kauai Windward Waters-Kauai Leeward Waters-Kauai Channel- Oahu Windward Waters-Oahu Leeward Waters-Kaiwi Channel-Maui County Windward Waters-Maui County Leeward Waters-Big Island Windward Waters. && DISCUSSION...Jelsema AVIATION...Thomas MARINE...Kino
2 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Downed tree and power lines blocked Highway 11 for a time near Naalehu, near mile marker 68, in the Kau District on the Big Island.
Kalihi Street was clolsed for a time in both directions near Umalu Place on Oahu due to fallen power poles and trees on the roadway.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, March 2020
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: 875139, 875140.