The Big Island of Hawaii was hit by a moderate earthquake tonight that registered at 5.3 on the Richter scale. It looks like the quake is volcano related as it occurred downslope near the current Pu’O eruption that has been ongoing since 1983.

A friend of mine from Hilo called me shortly after it happened. (I’m on the island of Oahu more than 220 miles away)… he said it was quite big and long. We had just gotten off the phone talking about the approaching hurricane.

Yes, Hurricane Flossie is still a factor on our near future weather. The last report showed that the hurricane was blowing with sustained winds of up to 120 mph, which is slightly less than it was this morning. The hurricane is a category 3 storm.

Forecasters predict the storm will just pass about 70 miles south of the Big Island of Hawaii tomorrow. The residents will still bear much of the brunt of the storm since winds radiate more than 140 miles out from the center. And this is assuming it stays on the same track. If it veers a few degrees north, the Big Island of Hawaii will definitely be hit. The other islands will also be in the direct path.

Here in Honolulu the effects of the hurricane should be minimum if the present track holds. As for the earthquake, it was not felt on Oahu.

We are following the progress of Hurricane Flossie, preparing for the worst but hoping for the best, earthquakes not withstanding.

Map graphic from the USGS.