Hurricane upgrades to Category 4
Hurricane Flossie strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it spun more than 1,000 miles south of Hawaii.
The hurricane could pass by Hawaii late Tuesday or early Wednesday, forecasters said, but by then cooler waters should weaken Flossie considerably to a tropical storm.
“Although the current forecast keeps the center of Flossie south of the Hawaiian islands . . . a closer approach cannot be ruled out,” the Central Pacific Hurricane Center said in a statement.
The storm, with gusts of 167 mph, was traveling west at about 12 mph.
Jeff Powell, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in Honolulu, said a “ramp up” of surf on the Big Island was expected late Monday.
The island’s southeastern shores could see waves of 8 to 12 feet, forecasters said, with the surf rising during the day Monday and peaking Tuesday.
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