Hurricane Lowell, still a Category 3, aims at Kauai and Ni'ihau

Hurricane Lowell was a Category 3 storm with 115 mph (185 km/h) sustained winds at 8 a.m. HST on 7 September. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center, in intermediate advisory 46A issued from Miami, placed the centre near 18.0N 162.1W, about 325 miles south-southwest of Lihue and 355 miles southwest of Honolulu, moving north-northeast near 15 mph.

The forecast track takes the core near or just west of Ni'ihau on Monday night and early Tuesday, then northwest and slower by Wednesday. A hurricane warning is in force for Kauai County. A tropical storm warning was added for Oahu on Monday morning as the track edged east. Hurricane conditions are expected in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument between Nihoa and French Frigate Shoals from Monday night.

Rainfall totals of 6 to 10 inches are forecast for Kauai, with local amounts up to 16 inches. The Big Island is down for 4 to 8 inches, isolated to a foot. Flash floods and mudslides are the inland threat. Large waves, possibly to 30 feet on exposed coasts, are the shore threat. Swells will keep dangerous surf on the rest of the chain for days.

Lowell is the fourteenth named storm, fifth hurricane, fourth major hurricane and second Category 5 of the 2026 eastern and central Pacific season. It formed on 27 August and reached Category 5 on 2 September, then eased to Category 3 as it turned toward Hawaii. Overnight microwave images still showed concentric eyewalls. An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter was due back in the eye on Monday for a fresh fix. Advisory 46 at 5 a.m. HST held the initial intensity at 100 knots.

Governor Josh Green declared a state of emergency on 3 September against Lowell and a possible follow-on from Karina. The state activated 129 National Guard members and sent six high-water vehicles to Kauai. Two state parks closed to campers on 4 September. This is the third major storm to point at Hawaii in three weeks, in a season the WMO has already flagged as running under a strong El Niño.

The cone can still slide east or west by tens of miles. That is why Oahu went from watch to warning in a few hours. Mountains on Kauai will take stronger gusts than the marine advisory speed. Power lines and the two-lane roads on the north shore do not need a landfalling eye to fail. They need a few hours of 74-mph gusts and a filled stream.

By early Wednesday the official forecast has Lowell as a weaker hurricane or strong tropical storm north of the islands, heading toward the open northwest Pacific. The rain it leaves on Kauai will still be moving downhill after the wind shifts.