Tree rips through St. Joseph’s Catholic Church convent in Makawao

MAKAWAO (HawaiiNewsNow) – Strong winds from Hurricane Lala uprooted a massive tree at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Makawao, sending it crashing into the convent and causing widespread flooding.

Read more State and county offices, schools, and courts closed statewide Monday following Lala

“So devastated,” said Fr. Edison Pamintuan. “It’s a lot of work, I know, but I believe that through God’s grace and the help of the community, we’ll be able to repair this building.”

The tree severed the roof of the convent, the building where nuns used to live, and caused flooding throughout the entire structure.

Read more Kalihi Valley grandmother left ‘looking at the mountains’ after Lala winds rip roof off home

It is unclear when the tree was uprooted. But parishioners discovered the damage after 7 a.m. mass on Sunday.

Fr. Edison said he is grateful no one was injured.

“The immediate need is for us to clean all this building and also in the school along our private road and to cut some of the trees that fell,” Pamintuan said. “Also to make sure that the convent, especially downstairs, because it’s flooded, to make sure that it’s dried before we turn on — granted the electricity will come back. So we have to make sure that everything is dried for our safety.”

Read more Power outages impact nearly 260K in Hawaii as Tropical Storm Lala hampers utility crews

How to help

A GoFundMe page has been set up for the church.

Those wanting to help can also contact the church office at (808) 572-7652