Storm-weary residents on edge after Lowell’s trailing rain floods Ka’u roads

PĀHALA, Hawaiʻi (HawaiiNewsNow) — Rain made for a difficult drive for Kaʻū residents Wednesday night, weeks after Hurricane Lala hit the area.

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Forecasters say the rain is trailing moisture from Hurricane Lowell, and thunderstorms fired up again on Thursday evening.

On Wednesday, Hawaiʻi County says there was no major damage. Crews spent the day clearing rocks and debris, but flooding on roads left Kaʻū residents on edge.

Pastor documents drive home

Pāhala pastor Troy Gacayan documented his drive home to Discovery Harbour along Highway 11 during a flash flood warning in his lifted truck.

“That’s Honu’apu right here. The right side of the road,” Gacayan said in a video.

“It was starting to get high. I’d say maybe, I’d say a foot and a half, maybe two feet of water already at that point,” Gacayan said.

Gacayan also recorded flooding along Nāʻālehu’s Main and Front streets — roads that had been cleared after Hurricane Lala nearly a month earlier.

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In video from Punaluʻu Bakery, water can be seen running through the parking lot.

“There’s a lot of PTSD going on, even at the school. I’m working at the school, a lot of students, they’re just kind of gun shy, just a little bit of rain, a little bit of flooding,” Gacayan said.

Gulch holds up after Lala damage

Pāhala residents say the nonstop rain made them nervous, but the gulch that overflowed and destroyed Highway 11 during Hurricane Lala held up.

“You still see a lot of debris all along pushed along the roadways, a lot of the rocks, a lot of the trees that were downed so,” said Deborah Funai Brown, a Kaʻū resident.

“It’s terrifying thinking about the next storms that are going to be coming around,” Brown said.

The River of Life Assembly of God in Pāhala has partnered with Convoy of Hope from Missouri to bring in supplies ahead of Tropical Storm Norbert. The group has already pre-positioned essential goods to prepare.

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