A north-northeast swell brought dangerously large breaking waves of twenty two to twenty six feet for north facing shores and twelve to sixteen feet for east facing shores. This lead to localized coastal flooding for portions of the Big Island and strong currents.
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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 north-northeast swell brought dangerously large breaking waves of twenty two to twenty six feet for north facing shores and twelve to sixteen feet for east facing shores. This lead to localized coastal flooding for portions of the Big Island and strong currents.
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 2, 4:07 AM HST, 1 hour 53 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Honolulu HI 407 AM HST Fri Feb 2 2024 .SYNOPSIS... The weather impacts through this weekend and into early next week are wind driven. Expect strengthening northerly winds starting today behind a rapidly moving cold front. These strong northerly winds turn into windy northeast to east trade winds from early Saturday morning into the first half of next week affecting all Hawaiian Islands. Strong trades gradually drop down to moderate to locally breezy levels by next week Thursday. Wet weather will continue today statewide with decreasing rainfall trends developing after the cold front passes through each island. Trade wind showers return starting late Saturday to Sunday mainly over windward and mountain areas with drier conditions forecast over leeward areas. && .DISCUSSION... The morning big picture satellite imagery shows the cold front is moving into Kauai with cloud and showers from the front merging with the nearly stationary surface trough near Maui. Local radar imagery continues to show light to moderate showers developing statewide. Wet weather will continue today statewide today with decreasing rainfall trends developing after the cold front passes through each island. Trade wind showers return starting late Saturday to Sunday mainly over windward and mountain areas with drier conditions forecast over leeward areas. This cold front will sweep across the state today with strong northerly winds filling in behind the front as it passes through each island. Wind speeds will accelerate to advisory levels over all islands through the day with the strongest wind speeds and highest wind gusts forecast over and down wind of mountains, and along west and east slopes of island terrain. A Wind Advisory was issued for all islands to cover these stronger wind impacts lasting through Sunday. Even stronger wind speeds are forecast over the highest elevation summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island, where a High Wind Warning was issued this morning. An extended period of strong trade winds will continue into the first half of next week. A strong high pressure system will build into the region through early next week producing strong to windy trade winds. Wind directions will veer from northerly windy today and tonight, to a more northeasterly direction on Saturday, to a more easterly direction from Sunday through Monday. Strong winds will gradually decrease each day from Tuesday onward, where the easterly trade winds will blow at more moderate to locally breezy levels by Thursday. Another low pressure system will move into the Central Pacific basin by the end of next week, with decreasing southeasterly winds in the forecast as the trailing cold front breaks down the high pressure ridge north of the islands. && .AVIATION... Bands of clouds and showers ahead of an approaching cold front continue to stream out of the west-northwest. As of 2 AM HST this morning, late night radar imagery indicated most of the shower activity to be focused over Maui County and spreading quickly eastward. Occasional MVFR ceilings and visibilities are associated with this shower activity. AIRMET Sierra for mountain obscuration now includes Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, and Maui, and will likely be further expanded to include northwest exposures of the Big Island later this morning. Winds will shift from west to north today as the front passes over the western islands. Drier conditions and gusty winds are expected behind the front. AIRMET Tango for low level turbulence to the south and west of island terrain will likely be needed for Kauai and Oahu later this morning and the rest of the state by late evening. && .MARINE... High pressure to the distant northwest will build eastward in the vicinity of 30N, pushing a cold front southeastward through the island chain today and tonight. North winds gradually increase today, with SCA level winds expected across all waters by late this afternoon. The high will strengthen and shift northeastward Saturday and Saturday night, before settling southward and closer to the islands Sunday through the middle of next week. Strong to near Gale force winds are expected during this time, with the strongest winds in the windier waters around Maui and the Big Island, where Gale force winds are possible. A Gale Watch remains in effect for these areas Saturday through Sunday. A Small Craft Advisory is now in effect for all marine zones today and tonight, and for areas outside of the Gale Watch through Tuesday. A pair of overlapping north to north-northeast swells continue to run higher than predicted at nearshore buoys early this morning. As a result, a High Surf Advisory is in effect for north and east facing shores of most islands through Sunday as well as west facing shores of Maui. Given the strong north to northeast winds along with the north-northeast swell direction, impacts are also likely from harbor surges at exposed northern harbors, including Hilo and Kahului harbors. See the Marine Weather Statement for additional details. Advisory level surf may linger through Monday along north and east facing shores, as a new large northwest swell builds and easterly trade wind swell trends higher, even as the north-northeast swell declines. North shore surf should lower below advisory thresholds by Tuesday, with east shore surf likely holding at advisory levels through Wednesday. Surf should lower below advisory levels along east facing shores by Thursday as the trades begin to ease. South shore surf will remain small through late next week. && .HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... High Surf Advisory until 6 PM HST Sunday for north and east facing shores of most Hawaiian Islands, including northeast and west facing shores of Maui. Wind Advisory until 6 PM HST Sunday for most lower elevation areas of all Hawaiian Islands. High Wind Warning until 6 AM HST Saturday for Big Island Summits. Small Craft Advisory until 6 PM HST Tuesday for Kauai Northwest Waters-Kauai Windward Waters-Kauai Leeward Waters-Kauai Channel- Oahu Windward Waters-Kaiwi Channel-Maui County Windward Waters- Big Island Windward Waters-Oahu Leeward Waters-Maui County Leeward Waters-Big Island Leeward Waters. Small Craft Advisory until 6 AM HST Saturday for Maalaea Bay- Pailolo Channel-Big Island Southeast Waters-Alenuihaha Channel. Gale Watch from Saturday morning through Sunday afternoon for Maalaea Bay-Pailolo Channel-Alenuihaha Channel-Big Island Southeast Waters. && DISCUSSION...Bohlin AVIATION...Bedal MARINE...Jelsema
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
12 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
Bayfront Dr. in downtown Hilo was closed due to coastal flooding.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Hawaii in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, February 2024
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: 1158739, 1158787, 1158788, 1158789, 1158790, 1158791, 1158792, 1158793, 1158794, 1158795, 1158796, 1158797.