Hurricane Lane Threatens $8 Billion in Damage to Hawaii

Economy

Published: August 23, 2018 10:35 am

Last Updated: January 11, 2020 6:56 pm

Residents of Hawaii’s Big Island are preparing for the first hurricane-force storm to hit the state since 1992. Hurricane Lane is a category 4 storm that is forecast to make landfall Thursday with winds of up to 145 mph.

State officials are urging residents to be prepared to shelter in place with enough food and water to last two weeks. The problem, of course, remains that residents who have not already left the Big Island very likely will not be able to until the storm passes.

Analysts at CoreLogic have looked at the potential flood damage to the state in the wake of the hurricane. Their analysis indicates that more than $8 billion in property is considered at “extreme” or “very high” risk of flood damage from the storm.

The CoreLogic analysis of four islands — Oahu, Hawaii, Maui and Kauai — reveals a total of 4,459 homes with a total reconstruction cost value (RCV) of about $1 billion are considered at “extreme” risk from Hurricane Lane. Another 44,158 homes on these four islands with a reconstruction cost value of nearly $7.3 billion are considered at “very high” risk of flood damage. Here’s the CoreLogic breakdown by island:

Hawaii
Homes at extreme risk: 443
RCV: $74.7 million
Homes at very high risk: 1,438
RCV: $350.2 million

Oahu
Homes at extreme risk: 2,312
RCV: $617 million
Homes at very high risk: 33,771
RCV: $5.16 billion

Kauai
Homes at extreme risk: 932
RCV: $188.7 million
Homes at very high risk: 2,578
RCV: $734.8 million

Maui
Homes at extreme risk: 772
RCV: $123.5 million
Homes at very high risk: 6,371
RCV: $1.04 billion