EMERGENCY PROCLAMATION RELATING TO THE SECOND KONA LOW WEATHER EVENT IN MARCH 2026

By the authority vested in me as the Mayor of the County of Hawaiʻi by the Constitution and laws of the State of Hawaiʻi, and by the Charter and ordinances of the County of Hawaiʻi, to prepare for and respond to emergencies and disasters, I, C. KIMO ALAMEDA, Mayor of the County of Hawaiʻi, hereby proclaim as follows:

WHEREAS, Hawai‘i Revised Statutes (HRS) Chapter 127A, provides for the establishment of County of Hawaiʻi (County) organizations for emergency management with the Mayor having direct responsibility and authority over emergency management within the County; and

WHEREAS, HRS Chapter 127A, and Hawai‘i County Code (HCC) Chapter 7, establish a Civil Defense Agency within the County and prescribes its powers, duties, and responsibilities; and

WHEREAS, HRS § 127A-14(b) empowers the Mayor to declare the existence of a local state of emergency in the County by proclamation if the Mayor finds that an emergency or a disaster has occurred or that there is imminent danger or threat of an emergency or a disaster in any portion of the County, as those terms are defined in HRS § 127A-2; and

WHEREAS, the Charter of the County of Hawaiʻi (CCH) § 13-23 and HCC § 7-1-6(a) also empower the Mayor to declare a state of disaster or emergency by proclamation; and

WHEREAS, on March 20, 2026, at approximately 3:39 A.M. HST, the National Weather Service Honolulu (NWS) issued a Flood Watch for all islands in the State of Hawai‘i in effect through 6:00 P.M. HST on Sunday, March 22, 2026; and

WHEREAS, the NWS Flood Watch warns that flash flooding caused by excessive rainfall is possible across Hawai‘i Island, with several rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall and thunderstorms expected as moisture streams northward; the heaviest rain is expected to last through Saturday, March 21, 2026, for most of the State, except for Hawai‘i Island, where the heaviest rain is expected on Sunday, March 22, 2026; and

WHEREAS, I issued the Emergency Proclamation Relating to the March 2026 Kona Low Weather Event on March 12, 2026, which declared a local state of emergency based on a Kona low pressure weather system that affected the County with heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, flash flooding, strong damaging winds, and blizzard conditions for the summits, and that separate emergency proclamation remains in effect; and

WHEREAS, the Kona low weather event that was the basis for the March 12, 2026, emergency proclamation caused significant rainfall, flooding, and damage throughout the County, and the ground throughout Hawaiʻi Island is already saturated from that event. As a result, the County’s soil, waterways, drainage systems, and flood-prone areas have a substantially diminished capacity to absorb or disperse additional rainfall, which significantly increases the risk of flash flooding, landslides, debris flows, and overflowing streams from any subsequent rainfall event; and

WHEREAS, Governor Josh Green, M.D., issued emergency proclamations relating to the Kona low weather events affecting the entire State, including his fourth emergency proclamation issued on March 19, 2026, which superseded his prior emergency proclamations; and

WHEREAS, the forecasted impacts of the incoming weather system, compounded by the already-saturated ground conditions from the recent Kona low event, may result or likely result in dangerous conditions to the lives, property, and environment of the County which may extend beyond the initial impacts, and include: flood-prone roads and other low-lying areas may be closed due to elevated runoff and overflowing streams; urban areas may experience significant flooding and property damage due to rapid runoff; residents and visitors in flood-prone areas face risk of injury or death from flash flooding; landslides may occur in areas with steep terrain; critical infrastructure including roads, bridges, power lines, and water systems may be damaged or rendered inoperable; and vulnerable populations including the elderly, keiki, persons with disabilities, and those experiencing houselessness face heightened risk from flooding and associated hazards; and

WHEREAS, the forecasted impacts may cause flooding of roads, streams, drainages, and low-lying areas resulting in debris, landslides, and closures; strong winds may cause flying debris, downed trees, downed power lines, and power or communication outages; hazardous travel conditions; all of which may result or likely result in dangerous conditions to the lives, property, and environment of the County and may extend beyond the actual impacts; and

WHEREAS, it is critical that the County has sufficient resources and can expeditiously and effectively prepare for, respond to, mitigate, and recover from the forecasted severe weather event and its compounding effects on the already saturated ground conditions, and protect the lives, property, environment, public health, welfare, and safety of the County, its residents, and visitors;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, C. KIMO ALAMEDA, Mayor of the County of Hawai‘i, hereby declare, effective March 20, 2026, that a local state of emergency exists under HRS § 127A-14(b), CCH § 13-23, and HCC § 7-1-7(a), because the forecasted severe weather event, compounded by the already-saturated ground conditions resulting from the recent Kona low weather event, poses an imminent danger or threat of an emergency or disaster to the County of Hawaiʻi; and

I FURTHER DECLARE, that based on the conditions described above, the following measures are reasonably necessary to address the emergency or disaster:

I. Invocation of Laws. Pursuant to HRS § 127A-12(c)(17), the Mayor may take any and all steps necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of HRS Chapter 127A, including the additional powers in HRS § 127A-13(b) which may only be exercised during an emergency period. I hereby authorize and invoke the following powers related to emergency management, if not already in effect:

A. HRS §§ 127A-12(a)(5), 127A-13(b)(3), 127A-13(b)(4), and HCC §§ 7-1-6(d)(2) and 7-1-6(d)(4). I authorize and direct the Administrator of the County of Hawai’i Civil Defense Agency, or their designee, to take appropriate actions to direct or control the following, as may be necessary for emergency management:

• Alerts, warnings, notifications, activations;
• Warnings and signals for alerts, and any type of warning device, system, or method to be used in connection therewith;
• Partial or full mobilization of personnel, in advance of, or in response to, an actual emergency or disaster;
• The conduct of civilians and the movement and cessation of movement of pedestrians and vehicular traffic during, before, and after alerts, emergencies, or disasters;
• Shut off water mains, gas mains, or electric power connections, or suspend other services;
• The mandatory evacuation of the civilian population; and

B. HRS § 127A-12(c)(11). Each public utility, or any person owning, controlling, or operating a critical infrastructure facility, is hereby required to protect and safeguard the public utility’s or the person’s property, or to provide for such protection and safeguarding; and provide for the protection and safeguarding of all critical infrastructure and key resources; provided that the protection and safeguarding may include the regulation or prohibition of public entry thereon, or the permission of the entry upon terms and conditions as I may prescribe

C. HRS § 127A-12(c)(14), CCH § 13-21, and HCC § 7-1-5(a). I direct all County agencies and officers to cooperate with and extend their services, materials, and facilities as may be necessary to address the emergency or disaster.

D. I direct the Director of Finance to administer the disaster and emergency fund in accordance with CCH § 10-17.

I FURTHER DECLARE that this Emergency Proclamation Relating to the Second Kona Low Weather Event in March 2026 shall terminate automatically sixty (60) days after its issuance, unless extended or terminated by a separate or supplementary proclamation, in accordance with HRS §§ 127A-14(c) and (d).