November seemed like a rainy month for much of the windward Big Island, but Hilo International Airport was the only official rain gauge in East Hawaii to record an above-average total for the month, according to the National Weather Service.
“It was below average because November is a rainy month, but in terms of actual rain on the windward side, it wasn’t too bad,” Kevin Kodama, senior service hydrologist at NWS in Honolulu said. “The windward side right now is pretty similar. I wouldn’t say it’s changed a whole lot, but conditions have improved. Even along the Hamakua Coast, I’ve been hearing that things have been better.”
The Hilo airport reported 16.36 inches of rain last month, 114% of its norm for November. But the airport’s year-to-date rainfall total of 86.37 inches was 80% of average, 22 inches less than in a normal year. More than a quarter of the airport’s November’s rain fell in one day, Nov. 3, with 4.3 inches reported.
While every other windward gauge reported below-average rainfall, several recorded totals in double-figures for the month, including Mountain View, 15.58 inches; Piihonua, 14.87 inches; Waiakea Uka, 14.72 inches; Laupahoehoe, 13.4 inches; and Pahoa, 12.28 inches.
Gordon Inouye, president of Puna Flower Power, an orchid grower in Keaau, told the Tribune-Herald in September he was rationing water because of low rainfall. Inouye said last week that the situation has improved.
“Our tanks are full,” Inouye said. Right now, we’re getting ample rainfall. It’s winter, and the days are shorter, so we don’t irrigate as much.”
“I can’t say it’s been the same for everywhere on the Big Island,” Kodama said. “Because we’ve had persistent trade winds, the leeward side has well been below average so far this wet season.”
Perpetually parched Waikoloa had just 0.04 inches of rain during the month, 4% of its norm, while Ka‘upulehu, home of the Four Seasons Hualalai Resort and Kukio Golf and Beach Club, received just 0.07 inches, or 5% of its average November rainfall.
And Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keahole, where visitors are almost always greeted with sunshine, was true to form last month, tallying just 0.09 inches of rain, 11% of its November norm.
Three of the four Kona coffee belt gauges, however, recorded well above average November rainfall totals, despite the region’s rainy season being in the summer.
“Kealakekua and Kainaliu got over six inches,” Kodama noted. “That’s not a big deal in the summertime, but in the wintertime, when they’re out of their wet season, that makes the percentages go up.”
Honaunau was the other coffee belt location reporting a wet November, with 4.73 inches, 152% of its monthly norm. Not sharing in that abundance was Waiaha, with 1.38 inches, about half its usual November rainfall.
According to Kodama, some areas of the Big Island are in D3 status, or extreme drought. Those areas include Mana, east of Waimea due to dry pastures, leeward North Kohala between Kahua Ranch and Hawi, and portions of Ka‘u between South Point and Punaluu.
Meanwhile, the wetter weather has continued in East Hawaii this month, with the Hilo airport reporting 6.72 inches of rain for the first 14 days of December.
Kodama said forecasters are sticking by their prediction of a wetter-than-normal rainy season for most of Hawaii.
“The (computer) models are still projecting pretty strong signals for above-normal rainfall for the early part of this year, so we’ll see,” he said.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.