Park Prepares for Tropical Storm Flossie

Date: July 28, 2013
Contact: Jessica Ferracane, 808-345-4216 (cell)

Hawaiʻi National Park, Hawaiʻi - Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park will remain open during Tropical Storm Flossie, but with minimal services.

"We encourage people to shelter in place, and stay off roads. Our first priority is safety, and keeping our park employees and visitors out of harms way," said Superintendent Cindy Orlando.

 

Park officials have closed the following areas as of Sunday evening. Closures remain in effect until the storm has passed and conditions are safe:

• Chain of Craters Road, from Devastation Trail parking lot to the coast
• All backcountry areas, including Mauna Loa and cabins
• Mauna Loa Road (known locally as “Mauna Loa Strip Road”)
• All coastal areas, including, ‘Āpua Point, Keauhou, Halapē, and Ka‘aha
• Kulanaokuaiki campsite
• Nāpau campsite
• Nāmakanipaio Campgrounds and A-frame cabins
• Jaggar Museum (observation deck open)
• Additional closures may be warranted as Flossie nears

Kīlauea Visitor Center will open Monday from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. with reduced staffing. Thurston Lava Tube will remain open. Volcano House and Kīlauea Military Camp are open.

The National Weather Service issued a Tropical Storm Warning for the islands of Hawai‘i, Maui, Moloka‘i, Kaho‘olawe, Lāna‘i, and O‘ahu. Forecasters predict extremely heavy rains. As of 5 p.m. HST Sunday, Tropical Storm Flossie was approximately 320 miles east of Hilo, with sustained winds of 60 mph, and higher gusts expected. The storm is moving west at 18 mph.

For updates on Tropical Storm Flossie, go to http://www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl/cphc/

For Civil Defense updates for the County of Hawai‘i, and the location of local shelters, go to http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/active-alerts/.

-NPS-