Tropical Storm Iselle Batters Hawaii

ByMAX GOLEMBO ABCNews logo
Friday, August 8, 2014

Tropical Storm Iselle made landfall on the Big Island of Hawaii early today -- but quickly fell apart due to the high volcanic mountain "Mauna Loa" that is over 14,000 feet high.

The storm slammed into the island at 2:30 a.m. local time, packing 60-mph winds. Iselle had previously been a hurricane, but was downgraded to a tropical storm as it got closer to land. The storm then quickly broke apart.

As a result, the National Weather Service's Central Pacific Hurricane Center reported, "The Center of Tropical Storm Iselle can no longer be located."

Hawaii Braces for Hurricanes Iselle and Julio

Behind Iselle, is Julio, currently a major hurricane. The Category 3 hurricane -- with winds of 120 mph -- is expected to graze the state this weekend and into early next week with rain and rough surf. There could be a few strong squall lines extending from Julio, that will bring gusty winds near 40 mph to the state as it passes by.

Before residents and tourists deal with Julio, they are still reeling from the affects of Iselle. Rainfall rates this morning were over 4 inches per hour on the Big Island and a flash flood warning was issued for the area.

Now the remnants of Iselle will continue moving south and west of the smaller islands. Rain, locally heavy, is forecast for the rest of the state along with high surf and gusty winds.

Iselle's heavy winds also knocked down trees, leaving 25,000 customers without power. Additionally, flights between the islands were delayed or canceled, stranding tourists.

Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie said the weather poses a "unique situation" for the state.

"It's unprecedented. We haven't had anything like this happen in a long, long time," Abercrombie said.

This is the second time in history that the Big Island of Hawaii gets hit by a tropical storm, and the third the state as a whole gets hit by a named storm.

Ahead of Iselle, many stores and businesses closed, and classes were canceled as schools were converted into shelters.

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