On Saturday evening, the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA) activated its statewide emergency coordination center as Tropical Storm Lala made landfall near Hilo. The agency, working in tandem with the Hawai‘i Department of Defense, issued evacuation advisories for low-lying areas along the Big Island’s eastern coastline. Residents reported power outages in the Hāmākua district and flooding along Highway 19 as of 7 p.m. local time.

HI-EMA Director James F. Toki confirmed that shelters were opened in three counties and that more than 2,400 people had checked in by midnight. The agency deployed National Guard units to assist with debris removal and medical evacuations. According to HI-EMA’s latest bulletin, preliminary assessments suggest storm-related damages could exceed $35 million, with the majority stemming from public infrastructure and disrupted utilities.

Meteorologists at the Central Pacific Hurricane Center noted that Lala’s wind speeds reached 65 mph at landfall, just below hurricane strength. The storm is expected to move west across the archipelago through Monday, bringing continued heavy rainfall and posing landslide risks for mountainous neighborhoods, particularly in Maui and O‘ahu.

This rapid mobilization is the first major climate resilience test for Hawai‘i’s updated disaster response protocols, which were revised earlier this year to align with the state’s 2026 climate adaptation targets. Emergency managers are tracking real-time impacts to critical infrastructure, including water treatment facilities and the inter-island power grid, as part of efforts to meet the SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) benchmarks.

Local officials have urged residents to remain indoors and conserve water and power until further notice. The coming week will be crucial for assessing the effectiveness of the new protocols and for quantifying longer-term resilience needs ahead of the peak Pacific storm season in September.