As Hurricane Lala closes in on the Big Island of Hawaii, there’s a blend of anticipation, anxiety, and perhaps just a smidgen of bravado from the residents who now face the first hurricane in 34 years. While Florida residents start their hurricane party preparations and chase after plywood sales, Hawaiians are boarding up amidst a different backdrop. It’s all coconuts and calm until the winds start reaching that impressive 75 mph, and ironically, this isn’t something they’ve had to deal with for well over a century on the Big Island.
With nearly 200,000 people under a hurricane warning and an unfriendly forecast promising up to 25 inches of rain, Hawaiians are in for quite an adventure. This storm definitely doesn’t seem to believe in personal space as it edges in, threatening to bring flash floods and mudslides along for the ride. Most folks perched up on those picturesque slopes might soon trade in their surfboards for inflatable rafts if they’re not careful.
Weather experts, those usual suspects of doom and gloom that we like to pretend aren’t all-knowing, indicated that the mountainous terrain uniquely complicates Lala’s wrath. The rain gets forced up because the mountains apparently have a magical aura or something. So, as it goes up, naturally, it must come down and not just in the gentle postcard kind of way, but more likely in a flash-flood, mudslide extravaganza. It’s almost as if Mother Nature has developed a taste for drama.
Unlike Florida’s flatlands where hurricane landfalls are celebrated with a cocktail, Hawaii’s rugged landscape makes the event more theatrical. No valleys filling up like a half-full swimming pool as seen in Asheville a while back. Instead, they have culverts and everything else that basically turns into fluvial roller coasters rushing toward the ocean. Who needs theme parks when your backyard does the trick? High winds, floods, and the sheer force of nature – sounds like the islands are about to host one unforgettable bash!
Even with all this chaos knocking on Hawaii’s tropical door, there’s a small silver lining. Hawaii’s residents, despite their long hurricane-free streak on the Big Island, seem to approach the situation with a blend of informed caution and that island spirit of resilience. Communication channels remain strong, local officials have prepped their communities, and while the storm’s strength doesn’t rival the Category 3 or 4 hurricanes fondly visited on the Gulf Coasts and Florida’s shorelines, it still tops the bill as a rather unique Hawaiian experience. Here’s hoping Lala’s bark is worse than its bite and the Big Island stands strong through this trial of nature.
