Hawaii’s governor declared an emergency on Tuesday after the state was hit by heavy rains and floods, described by officials as unprecedented.
“The emergency proclamation provides general state funds that can be used quickly and efficiently to help people affected by the severe climate, which is expected to continue until Friday,” wrote Governor David Ige in a post on Twitter.
Although there have been no reports of deaths or injuries, officials said severe floods damaged or destroyed homes, closed many public roads and led to evacuation orders for fear of rapid flooding and landslides.
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, firefighters responded to 20 weather-related calls from 8 am to 9 pm on Tuesday and rescued a 27-year-old man who was found standing on the roof of his truck.
On the island of Maui, heavy rains caused the Kaupakalua dam, which contains about 68 million gallons of water, to overflow, but left no structural damage, officials said. The floods, however, destroyed the Peahi Bridge and severely damaged the Kaupakalua Bridge in Haiku.
Flood and surveillance warnings are in effect across the state on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. The agency has already warned residents to expect landslides on steep terrain.
People living near the Kaupakalua Dam and the Kaupakalua Road were forced to evacuate, Maui County officials said on Tuesday. Previous city officials expected the dam to break, but later said there was no structural damage.
The Maui Fire Department said on Tuesday that rescue workers responded to more than a dozen calls from residents who were trapped by the flood.
“This was an unprecedented flood and we will be doing damage assessments today,” Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino said on Tuesday. “I ask everyone to be vigilant and safe.”
He also warned residents to avoid full seas and not to cross flooded roads.
“This is a real flood situation that we haven’t seen in a long time,” said Victorino on Monday during a live speech on Facebook. “Some of the residents have told me that this is the worst they have seen in over 25 years.”
In 2006, a dam collapse in Hawaii became fatal when seven people died after the Ka Loko dam collapse on the island of Kauai.
But East Maui residents say they haven’t seen rain like Monday’s for years.
“I have lived here for 30 years and I think this is the first time that I have seen so much rain,” Lydia Toccafondi Panzik, a resident of Makawao, told KHNL, an affiliate of NBC. “I’ve seen hurricane times, I’ve seen floods, but this was really one of the bad ones.”
Elisha Fieldstadt contributed.