NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kapaa, HI
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Kapaa, Hawaii since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Douglas in 2020. Since 1950, 6 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 6
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Kapaa
The strongest storm to pass near Kapaa was Iniki in 1992, a Category 3 hurricane with 128 mph winds when its centre passed 22 miles away. The record near Kapaa begins with Dot in 1959; the most recent system was Douglas in 2020, a Category 1 hurricane 36 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1980s, with 2 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 5 systems, one has come since 2000. Kapaa has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 80% of the 57 Hawaii cities on this site. The strongest of the 6 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F1 on December 17, 1967; its path came within 23 miles. Of the 6, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 3 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on December 13, 2008. Kapaa has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 57 Hawaii cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles once, in 2012, with stones of 0.75 inches (penny size). Kapaa has more hail reports within 10 miles than 49% of the 57 Hawaii cities.
Compare Kapaa's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Kapaa
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | DouglasJul 27 | 36 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1992 | InikiSep 12 | 22 mi | Category 3 (128 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1983 | GilAug 3 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1982 | IwaNov 24 | 38 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1959 | DotAug 7 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Kapaa: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Kapaa
By decade
- 2000s3
- 1970s2
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 17, 1967 | F1 | 23 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 13, 2008 | EF0 | 21 mi | 0.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 9, 2005 | F0 | 19 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 24, 2002 | F0 | 4 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 31, 1971 | F0 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 18, 1971 | F0 | 23 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 6 of 6, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kapaa
The Storm Prediction Center has one hail report within 10 miles of Kapaa, from March 9, 2012: 0.75 inches (penny size).
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kapaa
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lihue WSO Airport 1020.1, HI, 7 miles south of Kapaa at 100 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 75°F; February is the coolest, at 78°F and 66°F. March is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and June and July the driest at 1.8 inches; the year adds up to 36.2 inches over 66 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 1 days a year. A night below freezing comes less than once a year on average. That 36.2 inches is more than at 18 of the 33 Hawaii stations used on this site (55%). Anahola, 5 miles north, has its own station (Kilauea 1134, HI): 61.3 inches a year, 25.1 more than here, and an August average high of 83°F against 85°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Nawiliwili, HI, 9 miles south, averaged 85°F in September and 78°F in February over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from May to December. Sea level at the Nawiliwili tide gauge, 9 miles from Kapaa, has risen 0.75 ± 0.07 inches per decade from 1955 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 7.5 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 35 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 79 | 66 | 2.8 | 4 | 80 |
| Feb | 78 | 66 | 3.6 | 5 | 78 |
| Mar | 79 | 67 | 5.6 | 6 | 79 |
| Apr | 80 | 70 | 2.0 | 5 | 80 |
| May | 82 | 71 | 2.2 | 4 | 81 |
| Jun | 83 | 73 | 1.8 | 5 | 83 |
| Jul | 85 | 75 | 1.8 | 5 | 83 |
| Aug | 85 | 75 | 2.3 | 5 | 84 |
| Sep | 85 | 75 | 2.2 | 5 | 85 |
| Oct | 84 | 74 | 3.3 | 5 | 84 |
| Nov | 81 | 71 | 4.0 | 7 | 82 |
| Dec | 79 | 69 | 4.6 | 7 | 80 |
| Year | 82 | 71 | 36.2 | 66 | 81 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lihue WSO Airport 1020.1, HI (100 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Nawiliwili, HI, from NOAA Tides & Currents. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Kapaa
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 92 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kapaa: 59 heavy rain events, 30 flash floods and 3 thunderstorm wind reports. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $7.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 58 mph, on December 9, 2010. March has had the most flash floods, 14 of 30. Of the 51 Hawaii cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 36 have had fewer than Kapaa.
December 3, 2016: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Kapaa — 1 killed.
NWS: “Flash flooding at a stream near the Wailua River on Kauai swept a woman away to her death, though others in the kayak and hiking tour group managed to get to safety.”
April 12, 2024: flash flood 2 miles from the centre of Kapaa — $7.0 million damage.
NWS: “Emergency managers reported flash flooding along with multiple evacuations in the Wailua area. Additionally a large crane at the Wailua River was leaning on a power line and blocking a road.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Kapaa's ZIP code 96746 have filed 239 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $4.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Iniki in 1992: 104 claims (44% of all) and $2.2 million. 44% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 38 Hawaii cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 31 have fewer than Kapaa.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Iniki1992 | 104 | $2.2 million |
Kauai County, which includes Kapaa, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 hurricanes, 4 floods, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Lowell, on October 7, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kauai County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes and coastal flooding; Very Low for tornadoes and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $60.9 million a year, the 4th highest of 5 Hawaii counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $47.7 million (78%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Kapaa
- Anahola, HI5 mi
- Lihue, HI7 mi
- Kalaheo, HI10 mi
- Kilauea, HI10 mi
- Princeville, HI14 mi
- Koloa, HI14 mi
- Eleele, HI19 mi
- Hanapepe, HI19 mi
- Waimea, HI25 mi
- Kekaha, HI25 mi
- Waialua, HI85 mi
- Haleiwa, HI87 mi
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