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Heavy snow expected atop Big Isle summits as rains soak larger islands

MAUNA KEA WEATHER CENTER

A screenshot from the Subaru Telescope catwalk atop Mauna Kea this morning showed snow blanketing the ground.

The entire state, especially Hawaii island, should be prepared for the possibility of thunderstorms today as rains continue to move southeast and away from the islands, the National Weather Service said.

“Obviously it’s a lot different than yesterday but it’s still a little unstable, with the chance of possible thunderstorms,” said lead forecaster Derek Wroe.

An “unsettled weather pattern” is expected to remain in place through tonight, the weather service said.

Maui and Hawaii island are particularly vulnerable to rain today, giving way to more typical tradewind weather patterns by the middle of the week, the weather service said. A flash flood watch for Maui and the Big Island remains in effect through this afternoon.

The summits of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea should expect heavy snow today, but there was no official count of how much has landed so far, Wroe said. A winter storm warning remained in effect above the 11,000-foot mark, he said.

The Mauna Kea Weather Center this morning said the road to the summit remained closed from the Visitor Information Station at the 9,200-foot level due to ice and snow.

Sunday saw a record low temperature of “a very chilly … rainy 61 degrees” set at Honolulu Airport, beating the previous low temperature for the day of 63 degrees that was set in 1995, according to the weather service.

Record rainfall also was recorded Sunday at Kahului, which saw 2.19 inches. That beat the previous record for the day of 1.24 inches that was recorded in 1954.

Repair crews on Maui worked overnight and were expected to continue today to re-open South Kihei Road from Ohukai Road to Kaonolu Street, which was closed because of flooding.

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