Tropical Storm Moke advances towards Hawaii with heavy rain, strong winds

By Al Jazeera Staff and The Associated Press. Published On 22 Aug 202622 Aug 2026.

Key points

• The National Hurricane Center (NHC) in the United States documented that the storm's maximum sustained winds were concerning 85km/h (50mph).
• Lala came close enough to Hawaii Island to dump more than 1, 000mm (39 inches) of rain in some locations, causing rivers to burst their banks.
• Eastern Maui, meanwhile, is projected to receive 76mm to 150mm (3 to 6 inches), with smaller amounts of precipitation anticipated throughout the rest of the island chain.
• High winds additionally bent tall palm trees and downed electrical lines, forcing almost 130, 000 utility customers to lose power.
• Tropical Storm Moke is grinding towards Hawaii, bringing gusts of wind and heavy rain only a week after the islands faced similar conditions from Hurricane Lala.

On Saturday, Hawaii residents prepared for the latest storm. It is projected to pass south of Hawaii Island, the largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, overnight and into the after morning.

As of 11am Hawaii Standard Time (21: 00 GMT), Moke was located regarding 684 kilometres, or 425 miles, south of Hilo, a city on the eastern coast of Hawaii Island. It was moving west-northwest at 19km/h (12mph).

Notably, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in the United States documented that the storm's maximum sustained winds were concerning 85km/h (50mph).

Moke, like Lala, is forecast to spare the Major Island a potentially disastrous direct hit. But the island is still recovering from Lala, a Category 1 storm that spurred heavy flooding and power outages. At least one person died in last weekend's storm.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green and other state authorities have called on individuals to prepare for Moke by restocking food, medicine and other daily essentials ahead of the storm's passage.

"It could certainly have a big impact because we've already been hit hard, " Green remarked in a video statement. "We're pre-positioning all kinds of extra equipment and residents. I've additionally authorised 100 rooms, hotel rooms, for residents to go to, in case they don't have enough services or protection, safety."

While power had been restored to most of Hawaii Island after Lala, some remote areas were still experiencing outages, green continued that. Power is projected to be fully restored by September 8.

After passing Hawaii Island during the night, Moke is projected to continue on a westward path near the islands through early Tuesday, according to Casey Oswant, a meteorologist with the Honolulu office of the US National Weather Service.

"There will still be impacts, especially to the windward and southeast sides of the Big Island, but it will probably be a little bit more limited than what we saw with Lala, " Oswant remarked.

Meanwhile, the National Hurricane Center projects that Moke will bring roughly 130mm to 250mm (5 to 10 inches) of rainfall over the next two days on the southeast and windward sides of the Major Island. Some isolated areas could see as much as 380mm (15 inches).

Governor Green cautioned that the heavy rain is unlikely to end with Moke.

"Everyone be very careful, " he remarked. "This storm will be followed by another storm front about a week later, and we continue to see the impacts of these major weather fronts that have hit Hawaii."

Taken together, the developments around tropical Storm Moke advances towards Hawaii with heavy rain, strong winds point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.