600 on Oahu Flee Floodwaters, Jam Evacuation Shelters

Flooding caused by heavy rain forced nearly 600 people from their homes Friday, and schools, churches and a shopping center were turned into evacuation shelters.

“We’ve had reports of people stranded in four to five feet of water. It’s been a long night,” said Joe Reed, a disaster specialist for the Oahu Civil Defense Agency.

Reed said 589 people were counted in evacuation shelters.

The National Weather Service said up to 12 inches of rain fell over the Koolau Mountains and surrounding areas on the northeast side of Oahu island. A flood warning remained in effect Friday morning.

Reed said the rain struck worst in the Waimanalo area, on southeastern Oahu, where there were reports of flood waters as deep as five feet. He said high-riding vehicles from Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station were sent to help evacuate residents from the area.