4 Die, Homes Damaged as Torrential Rains Lash Hawaii’s Kauai

Torrential rains hit the Hawaiian island of Kauai on Saturday, causing flash floods that killed four people and damaged dozens of homes, authorities said.

Two people were listed as missing after fierce downpours that dumped more than 15 inches of rain in a 24-hour period.

The flooding caused landslides and serious property damage, said Mayor JoAnn Yukimura, who declared the island a disaster area.

Firefighters in Kapaa evacuated dozens of residents from flooded homes and took them to emergency shelters, but most were able to return home later Saturday.

Kuhio Highway, the main road around the island, was covered by flood waters in several areas, isolating the east and north sides of the island for a time.

Three men were killed in the Anahola-Aliomanu area on the east side of the island, Police Chief Calvin Fujita said. A Wainiha woman also was killed, said Scot Roskelley, a spokesman at Wilcox Memorial Hospital.

Three people were admitted to the hospital in stable condition with storm-related injuries, while a fourth was treated and released, Roskelley said.

Wailua received 15.3 inches of rain during the 24-hour period ending at 3:15 p.m., said Wyman Au, a National Weather Service forecaster in Honolulu. There was an unconfirmed report of 20 inches of rainfall during the same time period, he said.

Light rain continued to fall from a weakening line of showers that stalled over Kauai, and the forecast called for continued rain overnight, Au said.

Elsewhere Saturday, an intense low pressure system crossing the Upper Peninsula of Michigan produced high winds and snow squalls from Minnesota to New York state.

By late morning, nearly nine inches of snow had fallen at International Falls, Minn., and eight inches had accumulated at Paradise, Mich., the weather service reported.

Midday temperatures were in the teens and single digits from eastern North Dakota through Minnesota to western Michigan. Roseau, Minn., had a reading of 6 below zero.

Strong winds prevailed from the middle Mississippi Valley across the Ohio Valley and the Great Lakes region. Gusts hit 64 m.p.h. at Sewickley, Pa.; 49 m.p.h. at Peoria, Ill., and 47 m.p.h. at Cincinnati. By evening, wind gusts had reached 75 m.p.h. at the Dunkirk Lighthouse south of Buffalo, N.Y., and 59 m.p.h. at La Guardia Airport in New York City.

High winds in western Pennsylvania downed trees and power lines and blew a 70-foot tower off the municipal building at Mt. Lebanon. The antenna crashed through the building’s window.

Philadelphia Electric Co. officials said about 50,000 customers were without electricity because tree branches knocked down power lines.