Tropical Storm Moke was centered 545 miles southeast of Hilo late Friday and was still headed on a track that should carry it south of the main Hawaiian Islands. Even so, forecasters said the storm could bring heavy rain, gusty winds and dangerous surf to Hawaii this weekend and into early next week.
At 11 p.m. Friday, Moke was moving west-northwest at 8 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds of 45 miles per hour and higher gusts. Tropical-storm-force winds extended 175 miles from the center, a wide enough field to keep the storm relevant even if its core stays offshore.
The National Weather Service issued a Flood Watch for the island of Hawaii from late Saturday night through Monday afternoon, and the Big Island of Hawaii was expected to see the worst of the rain. Forecasters said 5 to 10 inches could fall across the island, with maximum amounts of 15 inches, while eastern Maui could get 1 to 2 inches and the rest of the islands 1 to 2 inches as well.
Moke was expected to gradually strengthen, but not enough to become a hurricane. It could reach a mid to higher-end tropical storm with winds of 50 to 60 miles per hour as it passes south of Hawaii Island, then weaken after that as it moves away from the islands.
That forecast leaves the familiar mismatch at the heart of the storm: a center passing south of Hawaii, yet enough moisture and wind spread to threaten the windward and southeast Big Island with life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in steep terrain and in areas recently affected by Lala. Swells from Moke were also expected to affect portions of the Hawaiian Islands this weekend and into early next week, raising the risk of life-threatening surf and rip currents.
The main question for residents is not whether Moke will hit the islands directly. It is how close the storm’s outer rain bands and swells will come as it slides south this weekend, and whether the Big Island can absorb another round of heavy rain before the system drifts past the smaller main Hawaiian Islands early next week.
