Avoid the Beach During Hurricane Threats

Many people want to see the effect a hurricane has on the ocean, or go down to the shoreline in hopes of surfing big waves. For a distant hurricane that misses Hawaiʻi by hundreds of miles, this may be possible. But if the hurricane is going to directly hit or even come close to your island, stay away from the water.

A hurricane is a low pressure system, and is so enormous that it can raise the sea level by one to several feet. That means the waves generated by winds of over 74 mph will be washing ashore through people's homes, rather than breaking nicely. In addition, the high winds and floating and flying debris would make for very unpleasant surfing conditions.