OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
9:53 AM – Sunday, August 16, 2026
Hurricane Lala weakened back down to a tropical storm without making landfall in Hawaii, though conditions continued to worsen on the Big Island, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without power and one person dead.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green (D-Hawaii) confirmed the death in a social media update on Saturday evening, reporting that the storm was the closest to the South Point area, which caused a car accident that killed one person.
Lala’s maximum sustained winds peaked at 80 mph, placing it into the Category 1 hurricane classification.
At the time, Green reported the Big Island and Maui seeing about 10 to 15 inches of rain, with eight to 10 inches expected across the state. Forecasters expect the Big Island to see about 10 to 20 inches, with 25 inches being the maximum possible.
“It’s going to impact virtually all the islands,” said Green.
Nearly 200 flights were postponed due to the storm, though the governor assured viewers they would be rescheduled.
Green said that more than 60,000 households were without power, though that number more than doubled overnight. As of Sunday morning, over 150,500 customers were out of power, according to PowerOutage.us.
The governor added that three hospitals lost power, but they had switched to using backup generators.
He said that at least 19 roofs were lost due to heavy winds, but he had already started the paperwork for a major disaster declaration and would assess the damage on Monday.
Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said at a news conference that search and rescue crews were working through dire conditions at Oahu’s Lulumahu Falls Trail to find a lost hiker.
Honolulu Ocean Safety Department Director Kurt Lager reported 59 rescues made by lifeguards on Saturday and emphasized that people should avoid the water on Sunday.
“It’s not a day to come to the beach,” he said. “It’s not a day to go paddling or surfing.”
Landfall is not expected at this point, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Joseph Clark. Meaning the last hurricane to make direct landfall on the Big Island will remain the one recorded 155 years ago in 1871, according to historical data.
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