Hawaii officials are warning about a giant swell Sunday expected to cause significant coastal erosion, strong harbor surge and flooding at vulnerable spots along northern and western shores.

The storm-generated swell from the northwest is forecast to rapidly build Sunday morning and peak in the evening with waves in the 35- to 55-foot range, National Weather Service forecasters said Friday.

“High surf of this magnitude can be deadly and extremely destructive,” said Hiro Toiya, director of the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management.

The large surf is expected to steadily diminish over Monday and into Tuesday.

Weather officials said the swell doesn’t appear to be quite as gnarly as the one that hit Hawaii on Feb. 10, when waves on the North Shore surpassed 60 feet and gale-force winds created extraordinarily hazardous conditions.

But this event is nothing to discount, National Weather Service officials told a statewide videoconference call with representatives of government agencies Friday afternoon.

They said the combination of hazardous surf, strong north winds and peak monthly high tides are likely to cause flooding in low-lying shoreline areas and across coastal roads Sunday through Monday.

“On Sunday morning (the surf) will rise from mortal to legend level real fast,” National Weather Service surf forecaster Patrick Caldwell said Friday morning.

The most perilous conditions likely will be around the spring high tide late Sunday and early Monday, Caldwell said, and above-­average beach erosion and strong harbor surges are also likely, leaving boats and coastal roads and development vulnerable to hazards.

On Friday the state Department of Land and Natural Resources announced it would shut down both the Keawaula and Mokuleia sections of Kaena Point State Park on Sunday.

On Maui, county officials said they would close the coastal campground at Papalaua Wayside Park off of Honoapiilani Highway on Sunday.

Toiya said the Department of Emergency Management will be monitoring nearshore conditions and will call upon its 100-member volunteer Emergency Management Reserve Corps to help with any issues that might arise, including dealing with situations such as traffic control around flooded roads.

Toiya cautioned residents living along north and west shorelines to monitor conditions closely and be prepared for any emergency.

Robert Shieve said he will be keeping a sharp eye on the surf from his Pupukea Beach home on the North Shore.

In November a large rogue wave damaged his elevated deck, knocked down lanai furniture, wiped out a row of potted plants and uprooted landscaping. Earlier in the summer he lost 12 feet of property to hurricane-generated swells from the north.

However, Shieve said he actually feels better about his situation now because northwesterly swells over the winter added 120 feet of sand to the beach.

But he’s still going to remain vigilant, especially if the swell shifts to due north. “I’ve got to,” he said.

Officials urged people to stay away from the water and downplayed the spectacle of it all, saying the waves will be ugly and disorganized, with the winds being detrimental to their form.

“If you don’t have to be down there, don’t go,” said John Cummings III, Honolulu Emergency Management public information officer.

“People like to look at the high surf, but these are not the type of conditions that surfers will be out there,” Toiya added.

Caldwell said the massive swell started near Japan three days ago and was pushed across the Pacific by several gales.

The sheer size of the combined seas and swell, he said, will allow the surf to deflect around island corners at the edges of the South Shore.

But fine-tuning the specifics of the forecast will be possible only when new satellite data become available today and Sunday, he said.

“We’re keeping an eye on this,” Maui Mayor Michael Victorino said in a press release. “I urge everyone to stay tuned to online and published news reports and TV and radio broadcasts. Please, take appropriate precautions, especially in coastal areas prone to flooding.”

For updated information on ocean and weather alerts, visit the NWS website, www.weather.gov/hawaii.