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Oahu Civil Defense Agency |
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HURRICANES IN HAWAII:
WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF DAMAGE?
WHAT CAN HOME OWNERS DO TO REDUCE THEIR RISKS?
What are the chances of a hurricane damaging or destroying my home in the future?
No one knows. We can only go on past history. Almost no one expected a hurricane as powerful as Iniki would strike Hawaii, and the chance of another hurricane as strong as Iniki hitting Hawaii is very small. The best we can guess is hurricanes in the future will probably hit Hawaii as frequently as they have in the past. | |
Source: Tom Schroeder, "Hawaii Hurricanes: Their History, Causes, and the Future." In Hawaii Coastal Hazard Planning Project. Office of State Planning, December 1993: 41-71 |
| How often have hurricanes struck Hawaii in the past?
Before 1950, windstorms that struck Hawaii were not called hurricanes. There are newspaper stories and government records that show strong wind storms have struck all islands in Hawaii since the beginning of recorded history.
We know that since 1950 five hurricanes or tropical storms have caused serious damage in Hawaii: |
- Hurricane Nina in 1957 produced record winds in Honolulu.
- Hurricane Dot did a lot of damage on Kauai in 1959.
- Hurricane Iwa did extensive damage on Kauai and Oahu in 1982.
- Hurricane Estelle produced very high surf on Hawaii and Maui and floods on Oahu in 1986.
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- Hurricane Iniki did extensive damage on Kauai and Leeward Oahu in 1992.
Since 1950, seven other tropical storms or hurricanes could have caused serious damage. These include Hurricane Fernanda in 1993 and Hurricane Emilia in 1994, the strongest to pass through our part of the Pacific. |
Prepared by the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Hawaii with funds supplied by the Hawaii Coastal Zone Management Program pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric and Administration Award
No. NA470Z0264 for the Hurricane Relief Fund, P.O. Box 541, Honolulu, Hawaii 96809
Phone: (808) 586-3100 Fax: (808) 586-3109 |
| The purpose of this document is to provide general information. Use of this information does not guarantee property loss or personal injury prevention. The information in this document does not guarantee compliance with any warranty, ordinance, law, regulation, or building code and does not constitute a warranty by the State of Hawaii or the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund or any of their employees or agents, as to the effectiveness of the methods described herein. |
More Hurricane Questions
If you would like a printed copy of this brochure, please call Oahu Civil Defense at 523-4121.
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