Tropical Storm Moke expected to bring up to 15 inches of rain in Hawaii
Hawaii is still cleaning up from Hurricane Lala, which dumped massive amounts of rain on the islands.
Updated on: August 22, 2026 / 4:38 PM EDT / CBS News
Tropical Storm Moke is expected to deliver heavy rainfall and gusty winds this weekend as it skirts just south of the Hawaiian Islands in the wake of serious damage delivered by Hurricane Lala .
Moke packed maximum sustained winds of 50 mph as of midday Saturday and was expected to strengthen throughout the day, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm is not expected to make landfall in Hawaii, but will still deliver rain and wind to the Big Island on Saturday night and early Sunday and then the other islands early next week.
"This rainfall may produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides for the windward and southeast Big Island, especially in steep terrain and over areas that were affected recently by Lala," according to the National Hurricane Center.
The islands, especially the Big Island, were hit very hard by Hurricane Lala just last weekend. A hurricane hasn't made direct landfall in the state since Iniki in 1992, but the eye of the then-Category 1 Hurricane Lala passed just 30 miles off the Big Island's coast, bringing wind gusts over 80 mph and torrential rain, with some areas seeing more than 3 feet. Kapalua, located in Maui County, was hit with 48 inches of rain over the weekend.
The rainfall totals from Moke won't be as high, but will still be dangerous, especially in conjunction with the already saturated ground. Rainfall totals across the hard-hit Big Island will span 5 to 10 inches with up to 15 inches in some locations, according to the National Hurricane Center. Eastern Maui, the second-largest of the islands, will receive 1 to 2 inches on average, with some places on the island seeing up to 4 inches.