A surge of deep moisture moved over the Big Island and combined with a relatively low freeing level to generate periods of heavy snow and freezing rain at times.
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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 surge of deep moisture moved over the Big Island and combined with a relatively low freeing level to generate periods of heavy snow and freezing rain at times.
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 2, 4:11 PM HST, 1 hour 49 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Honolulu HI 411 PM HST Thu Mar 2 2023 .SYNOPSIS... Gusty trades will continue to weaken across much of the state this evening with a gradual decline expected to continue through Friday, and lighter winds expected over the weekend. Showers will continue with locally heavy rainfall and thunderstorms possible at times through Friday. A series of fronts will move through the islands next week, bringing moderate to breezy southwest winds to the area, and shifting rainfall to the west through south facing slopes and coasts. && .DISCUSSION... For tonight...winds continue to slowly weaken across the state this afternoon, with wind speeds now mainly below advisory levels. Otherwise, showers will continue across much of the state tonight. Current radar trends show the greatest concentration of showers centered across Maui County and Big Island, where satellite base PW imagery shows deeper moisture streaming in from the east. Additionally, the latest lightning data shows some thunderstorms in the vicinity of Big Island, with the largest concentration currently around 200 miles south to southeast of South Point in area of modest instability (SW 0C to -1C). Moisture depths, stability index and thunderstorm probabilities, all suggest that locally heavy rainfall and thunderstorms remain possible across the eastern end of the state through tonight. Across the western end of the state, radar shows showers remained more limited as satellite based PW imagery shows drier air streaming into these areas. However showers, along with a slight chance for thunderstorms, are expected to increase in areal coverage across the western end of the state through tonight, as deeper moisture and instability slowly expands westward. Wintry weather will continue to affect the summits through tonight as some deeper moisture moves across the state. Friday through Sunday....High pressure north of the state will continue breezy trades Friday. Wind are then expected to diminish Friday night and Saturday as a cold front approaches the state from the northwest, and the ridge north of the state weakens. This will allow for diurnal land and sea breezes Saturday into Sunday due to the weakened pressure gradient. However a transition to more southerly winds is expected across Kauai and Oahu Sunday night as the front northwest of the state advances forward. Deep moisture depths and lingering weak instability will continue a wet pattern across much of the state through Friday night, with the greatest concentration of showers lingering across windward areas. Additionally, lingering instability and low end thunderstorm probabilities, would suggest a chance for some thunderstorms across portions of the islands into early Saturday. However a trend to more stable conditions and land sea breeze circulations, would promote some additonal showers along leeward areas this weekend. Monday through next week...Winds are forecast to increase out of the southwest to moderate levels Monday before becoming locally breezy Tuesday and Wednesday as a series of fronts move through the island chain. Showers will increase over the western end of the state Monday in advance of the approaching front. Deep layered moisture and shower coverage will then expand eastward across the rest of the island chain Tuesday and Wednesday. && .AVIATION... Strong trades have weakened slightly across the forecast area and will continue to do so through tonight, settling firmly within the breezy category by Friday afternoon. Visible satellite shows a corridor of deeper moisture taking aim on Maui through Oahu this afternoon with Lihue soon to follow this evening. For the near term, AIRMET Sierra has been expanded to included Windward Oahu. MVFR with localized IFR will be common in these areas through tonight. A mention of light icing is also retained in the AIRMET product as the band of incoming showers has appreciable vertical depth and extends well into the icing layer over a rather wide area. Low clouds and showers are also forecast to increase in coverage over Windward Big Island this evening. Isolated thunderstorms are possible over windward zones through Friday. AIRMET Sierra for mountain obscuration is in effect for Windward Maui and Molokai and Oahu. AIRMET Tango is in effect for lee turbulence. AIRMET Tango is in effect for moderate mid/upper turb FL180/4000. Light icing near and upstream of Maui thru Oahu FL110/FL200. && .MARINE... The strong surface high far north of the state has weakened slightly and in response the winds have dropped just a touch. Strong to near gale force trade winds continue to produce rough conditions and large seas this afternoon, but it is now on a gradual downward trend. The Gale Warning has been downgraded to a Small Craft Advisory for the windier waters around Maui County and the Big Island. A Small Craft Advisory is now in effect for all Hawaiian waters through Friday afternoon. Winds will continue to steadily decrease over the weekend with winds becoming light and variable by Sunday. A front will gradually approach the state early next week and will bring increasing showers and southerly winds starting as early as Monday of next week. The front is expected to gradually push through the state and will likely bring some periods of heavy rain by next Tuesday. Surf along east facing shores will remain rough, but is now gradually decreasing in response to the winds. The High Surf Warning has been downgraded to an Advisory for east facing shores. Surf heights should continue to trend down on Friday and should drop below advisory thresholds by this weekend as winds further ease. Surf along north facing shores will remain well below the seasonal average each day through early next week, with the exception of the shores exposed to the large easterly seas wrapping in. A small long-period west-northwest swell will fill in Friday and decline through the weekend. A small long-period pulse is possible Tuesday out of the north-northeast from a gale predicted to move through the Gulf of Alaska over the weekend. For the long-term, a more significant winter-like scenario unfolding will become a possibility through the second half of next week in response to broad low pressure evolving north-northwest of the islands. Confidence remains low on surf heights, but a large to extra-large northwest swell will be possible around Wednesday or Thursday of next week. Surf along south facing shores will remain near the seasonal average each day, with mainly wind swell wrapping into exposed areas. Short-period and choppy surf conditions are possible early next week if the fresh southwest winds develop as advertised. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... High Surf Advisory until 6 PM HST Friday for Olomana-Maui Windward West-Kauai East-Kauai South-East Honolulu-Koolau Windward-Molokai Windward-Molokai Southeast-Windward Haleakala- Kipahulu-South Haleakala-Big Island Southeast-Big Island East- Big Island North. Small Craft Advisory until 6 PM HST Friday for all Hawaiian waters- && DISCUSSION...SWR AVIATION...JVC MARINE...Kino
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy snow and mixed precipitation generated snow accumulations up to 8 inches with ice accumulations around two tenths of an inch or less that forced road closures on the Big Island Summits.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, March 2023
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: 1084548.