Hurricane Lane may be gone, but the damage it wreaked will be felt for months.
New drone footage has captured the catastrophic flooding the tropical storm caused as it dumped more than 52 inches of rain on Hawaii over four days.
Lane is the second-biggest storm rainfall in US history, ranking behind only Hurricane Harvey – which dumped 60.58 inches of rain in Nederland,Texas last year.
The new footage shows the extent of Lane’s damage in the Hawaiian island of Kauai, revealing road after road flooded with muddy waters.
New drone footage has captured the catastrophic flooding the tropical storm caused in Kauai as it dumped more than 52 inches of rain on Hawaii over four days
Although Lane drifted away from the Hawaiian coast on Sunday, much of Kauai remained flooded as of Tuesday.
And heavy rains on the island have only worsened waterlogged roads and highways, forcing more than 20 homes to be evacuated as well as school closures.
Downpours are expected to continue this week, which forecasters warn could slow clean-up efforts across the state and even aggravate flooding.
More rain could trigger new mudslides and continue to threaten lives and property, according to Accuweather.
There could be new evacuation orders and residents who had to seek shelter may not yet be able to return to their homes.
The new footage shows the extent of Lane’s damage in Kauai, revealing road after road flooded with muddy waters
While Lane drifted away from the Hawaiian coast on Sunday, much of Kauai remained flooded as of Tuesday
‘The most numerous downpours that follow Lane are expected to be over the typical windward locations on the Big Island and Maui County,’ reported AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson.
But the windward areas of Oahu and Kauai will also be hit by localized downpours, leading to potential flash flooding.
Hawaii is also expected to be more humid than usual, which will put a strain on clean-up efforts.
Drier air is expected to hit Hawaii later in the week and lessen the severity of expected showers.
And heavy rains on the island have only worsened waterlogged roads and highways, forcing more than 20 homes to be evacuated as well as school closures
Downpours are expected to continue this week, which forecasters warn could slow clean-up efforts across the state and even aggravate flooding
While Lane did not break the all-time rainfall record in the country, it does rank as Hawaii’s biggest tropical cyclone rainfall after dropping 52.02 inches of rain.
The previous Hawaii record was 52 inches measured during Hurricane Hiki in 1950.
It’s still too early to quantify the extent of the damage, but it runs the gamut from flooded homes to washed-out roads, said Kelly Wooten, spokeswoman for the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency.
‘We don’t really have any numbers or statistics back yet,’ she said. Assessment teams began surveying the damage Sunday.
The storm caused damage mostly on the Big Island, where rivers raged near Hilo and nearly 40 people had to be rescued from homes.
Lane ranks as the second-biggest storm rainfall in US history, behind only Hurricane Harvey – which dumped 60.58 inches of rain in Nederland, Texas. Pictures is flooding in Kauai on Monday
More rain this week could trigger new mudslides and continue to threaten lives and property, forecasters warn. Pictured are ducks paddling past a partially submerged car in Hilo, Hawaii on Saturday
FILE PHOTO: A retaining wall lies on its side after being toppled by flooding caused by Hurricane Lane in Hilo on Saturday
There were no deaths from the storm, which had the potential to cause much more destruction.
About 200 people have called to report damage, mostly on the east side of the Big Island, county Managing Director Wil Okabe said.
‘What we’re concerned about is the mold — when it goes into the drywall, the rug, stuff like that,’ Okabe said.
The storm named Lane was barreling toward the Hawaiian Islands as a powerful Category 5 hurricane early last week with top sustained winds of 160 mph.
But then it slowed down, moving as slow as 2 mph at times.
On Sunday, state Sen. Kai Kahele surveyed flood damage at Waiakea Elementary School in Hilo on the Big island.
A woman pushes her bicycle through flooding caused by Hurricane Lane in Hilo on Saturday. There were no deaths from the storm, which had the potential to cause much more destruction
About 200 people have called to report damage, mostly on the east side of the Big Island in Hawaii. Pictured is floodwater in Hilo on Saturday
Residents play in floodwaters at a baseball field during flooding from Tropical Storm Lane on the Big Island on Saturday
Six classrooms for preschool, special education and kindergarten students flooded, and the smell of mildew was settling in, he said.
‘I think it’s reflective of what you see all over east Hawaii,’ he said.
‘Four feet of water in three days overwhelmed even the best infrastructure and the best storm drains and plans.’
The entire state was under a flash-flood watch through Tuesday.
‘People just want the rain to stop,’ Kahele said. ‘People are tired of being wet.’
Forecasters are continuing to monitor a tropical system brewing near southwest Mexico, which may inch closer to Hawaii during the first week of September.
The storm named Lane was barreling toward the Hawaiian Islands as a powerful Category 5 hurricane early last week with top sustained winds of 160 mph. But then it slowed down, moving as slow as 2 mph at times
A resident carries his bodyboard through floodwaters, while bodyboarding in the area for fun, during Tropical Storm Lane on the Big Island on Saturday
Hawaiians have also been warned of additional threats from a developing El Niño, which is expected to bring more rain the normal to the state through October.
‘Because El Niño is a plume of warmer-than-average waters over the tropical Pacific Ocean, the warm water can sustain more hurricanes than average over the eastern and central Pacific,’ said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
‘[This] causes them to be stronger in nature and allow them to retain strength for a longer period of time as they approach Hawaii.’
But it’s not all bad news. Tropical Storm Miriam is not expected to threaten Hawaii as it strengthens into a hurricane this week.