Hurricane Lane

Little more than 24 hours ago, Hurricane Lane was barreling towards the state as a category three storm with winds in excess of 200km/h. Now, the storm's maximum sustained winds are about 110km/h.

The National Weather Service announced the downgrade on Saturday afternoon, and hurricane warnings for much of the archipelago were downgraded to tropical storm warnings.

However, authorities are still warning of the storm's destructive potential. Residents are being told to gird themselves for a lengthy storm that could linger well into next week.

Even if it does not make landfall, the National Weather Service warned, the storm could bring “life-threatening impacts,” including hurricane-force winds, torrential rain and flash flooding. The storm’s outer rain bands had put much of the eastern part of the Big Island of Hawaii under a flash flood warning by Thursday morning, and one site in Hilo had already recorded more than 18 inches of rain.

Officials warned that the unpredictable track of the hurricane left much of the state potentially vulnerable.