Hurricane Lane, now a Category 5 storm, is heading toward Hawaii
![Hurricane Lane approaches Hawaii](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vfvoShi6Ne5iMtjWt8gqrb-499-80.jpg)
The National Weather Service announced Tuesday night that Hurricane Lane, an erratic storm currently about 500 miles southeast of Honolulu, had strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 160 miles per hour. Hawaii's Big Island is under a hurricane warning and most of the other Hawaiian islands are under hurricane watch. "On the forecast track, the center of Lane will move very close to or over the main Hawaiian Islands from Thursday through Saturday," potentially bringing devastating winds and life-threatening flash floods, the weather service said, but "it is much too early to confidently determine which, if any, of the main Hawaiian islands will be directly impacted by Lane."
Even if Hurricane Lane doesn't make landfall, its rain and wind could cause significant damage to Hawaii. Schools will be closed on the Big Island and in Maui County starting Wednesday, and Hawaii Gov. David Ige (D) said all nonessential state employees on Maui and Hawaii islands can take administrative leave Wednesday through Friday. Hawaii hasn't seen a Category 5 hurricane since 1994, NWS says. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - February 9, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - personal data, trans athletes, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 tit-for-tat cartoons about Trump's trade war
Cartoons Artists take on Canada, Mexico, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The catastrophic conflict looming in the heart of Africa
In the Spotlight Showdown between DR Congo and Rwanda have been a long time coming
By The Week UK Published
-
Rain helps Los Angeles wildfires, risks mudslides
Speed Read The weather provided relief for crews working to contain wildfires, though rain over a burn area ups the chances of flooding and mudslides
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Death toll rises in LA fires as wind lull allows progress
Speed Read At least 24 people have died and 100,000 people are under mandatory evacuation orders
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden cancels Italy trip as raging LA fires spread
Speed Read The majority of the fires remain 0% contained
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Fast-spreading Los Angeles wildfires spark panic
Speed Read About 30,000 people were under an evacuation order as the inferno spread
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Hundreds feared dead in French Mayotte cyclone
Speed Read Cyclone Chido slammed into Mayotte, a French territory in the Indian Ocean
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Thirteen missing after Red Sea tourist boat sinks
Speed Read The vessel sank near the Egyptian coastal town of Marsa Alam
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Global plastics summit starts as COP29 ends
Speed Read Negotiators gathering in South Korea seek an end to the world's plastic pollution crisis, though Trump's election may muddle the deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden visits Amazon, says climate legacy irreversible
Speed Read Nobody can reverse America's 'clean energy revolution,' said the president, despite the incoming Trump administration's promises to dismantle climate policies
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published