Hurricane Nolo expected to bring heavy rain as it skirts Hawaii’s Big Island

NAALEHU, Hawaii — Hurricane Nolo is forecast to strengthen into a major hurricane in the Pacific Ocean over the weekend, unleashing intense rain, the possibility of life-threatening flash flooding, and dangerous surf for Hawaii’s Big Island.

Nolo, which was a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, will trigger tropical storm conditions for the Big Island on Friday night, the National Hurricane Center forecast. Come Saturday, hurricane conditions are possible on the island, especially in areas with steep terrain, the weather service warned.

Nolo is about 155 miles south of South Point, the southernmost point of the Big Island, moving north-northeast at 5 mph as of Friday 8 p.m. ET (2 p.m. HST).

This marks the third hurricane in less than two months to whip past Hawaii (following Lala and Lowell ). The active Pacific hurricane season is likely due to a record-setting El Niño — a natural climate pattern characterized by a rise in sea surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific, and spawns more intense and frequent cyclones there.

On its current path, Nolo will move slowly northward Friday night, but will remain south of Big Island through Saturday. Then, it will turn westward and move away from the island but increase in speed Saturday into Sunday, the hurricane center said.

Nolo’s center will remain well south of the main Hawaiian islands, the National Hurricane Center said in its Friday afternoon local time advisory.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said Friday that President Donald Trump approved the state’s request for an emergency declaration for Nolo to provide federal assistance for emergency protective measures across the state.

Time is almost up for residents to finish preparations for heavy rain and flooding impacts “as heavy rain increases in both coverage and intensity late today,” the National Hurricane Center warned in an advisory .