Muddy floodwaters from heavy rains inundated streets, pushed homes off foundations, submerged vehicles and prompted evacuation orders for thousands north of Honolulu on Friday as officials warned a 120-year-old dam could fail.
Emergency sirens sounded across Oahu’s North Shore, where rising water battered communities known for surfing. Honolulu authorities told residents downstream of the Wahiawa dam — long considered vulnerable — to evacuate, saying the structure was “at risk of imminent failure.”
There were no immediate reports of fatalities or injuries, though some homes had been swept away, Honolulu spokesperson Ian Scheuring said. Crews searched by air and water for stranded residents; operations were hampered when people flew personal drones to photograph the flooding, officials said.
Dozens — possibly hundreds — of homes were damaged but authorities had not completed a full assessment, Mayor Rick Blangiardi said. About 5,500 people were under evacuation orders. “There’s no question that the damage done thus far has been catastrophic,” he said. City officials said they were confident in the stability of other island dams but cautioned that additional rain made conditions unpredictable.
The National Guard and the Honolulu Fire Department airlifted 72 children and adults from a spring break youth camp at the Our Lady of Kea’au retreat on Oahu’s west coast. Although the camp sits on higher ground, officials did not want to leave attendees there; floodwaters had cut off the camp’s entrance road, St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawai’i — which owns the property — said.
On Maui, officials issued an evacuation advisory for some Lahaina neighborhoods after nearby retention basins neared capacity. Portions of those neighborhoods had been burned in the massive 2023 wildfire that devastated much of Lahaina.
Officials had monitored dam levels since a storm last week dumped heavy rain across the state, causing catastrophic flooding that washed away roads and homes. A similar but weaker storm was forecast to bring more rain through the weekend. “It’s going to be a very touch-and-go day,” Gov. Josh Green wrote on social media.
Much of the state was under a flood watch, with Haleiwa and Waialua on northern Oahu placed under a flash flood warning, the National Weather Service said. One shelter at Waialua High and Intermediate School was evacuated because of rising water; about 185 people and 50 pets there were bused to another evacuation center, though 54 people remained in the shelter by midday.
Parts of Oahu recorded 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) of rain overnight, adding to saturation from last weekend’s storm. Kaala, the island’s highest peak, received nearly 16 inches (40 cm) within 24 hours, the NWS reported. The downpours were driven by “Kona lows,” winter storm systems with southerly or southwesterly winds that pull in moisture-laden air. Experts say the intensity and frequency of heavy rains in Hawaii have increased with human-caused global warming.
Waialua resident Kathleen Pahinui, preparing to evacuate to higher ground, said the aging Wahiawa dam worries locals every time it rains. “Just pray for us,” she said. The state has designated the dam as having “high hazard potential” and warned that a failure “will result in probable loss of human life.”
The earthen dam was built in 1906 to support sugar production for the Waialua Agricultural Company, later part of Dole Food Company. It was reconstructed after a collapse in 1921. State records show Dole received four notices of deficiency about the dam since 2009 and was fined $20,000 five years ago for not addressing safety issues on time. Dole later proposed donating the dam, reservoir and ditch system to the state if the state agreed to repair the spillway to meet safety standards.
In 2023, the state passed legislation authorizing acquisition of the dam and allocated $5 million to buy the spillway and $21 million to repair and expand it to comply with safety requirements. The transfer has not been completed; a state board is scheduled to vote on the acquisition next week. Dole said in an emailed statement that “the dam continues to operate as designed with no indications of damage.”
Hawaii regulates 132 dams, most originally built for sugar cane irrigation, according to a 2019 infrastructure report by the American Society of Civil Engineers.