Tania Takashiba said she was doing what she usually does when storms threaten in Hawaii: getting bottled water and toilet paper, along with other basics, while lines for groceries and gas stayed busy all day Thursday. Hawaii County officials said residents should use Thursday to prepare and Friday to hunker down before Tropical Storm Lala is forecast to become a hurricane by Saturday morning.
“We are kind of used to it. But yet every time we always kind of take precaution that we need. I usually try to get my bottled water and toilet paper and stuff, but everybody is nice about it, and it’s not crazy,” Takashiba said at the Hilo Safeway. At the Puainako KTA, shoppers bought water, rice, toilet paper, flashlights and batteries, and Janel Bolner said, “Today is a little bit busy. We came in earlier to make sure everything was okay, and 8 o’clock we started to notice it was picking up,” before adding, “People get absolutely crazy in the afternoon at 4:30 p.m. when everyone comes off of work, but we’ll be ready.”
Kimo Alameda on Hawaii Island
Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda urged residents to take precautions, get emergency kits and inform their neighbors and the kupuna. “You got to take all the necessary precautions, right? So it’s batteries. It’s get your emergency kit, inform your neighbors, the kupuna. Make sure that everybody’s safe because our island’s big and we have small communities and we’re very connected,” he said.
County officials said they had held meetings with the fire department and the National Guard about placing resources where needs could be the greatest because of the storm’s track. They identified Puna, Kau and South Point as areas that could need the greatest resources, the same areas hit by the Kona Low storm. Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency said Thursday was the day to prepare and Friday was the time to hunker down.
South Hilo district base yard
County workers were prepping sand at the South Hilo district base yard, and residents could come there with or without their own sand bags. The county was offering sand at 17 locations around the island and was also providing sand for public schools.
KTA’s safety and security team said it would keep the store open as long as possible, and typical hours at KTA are 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Store leaders said there had been plenty of supply in the warehouse and no panic buying, even as lines stayed long at Hilo Safeway and busy at Puainako KTA.
The immediate decision point now sits with the county’s Friday preparations: residents in Puna, Kau and South Point are being told to get ready before conditions worsen, and stores and county sand sites are the places people are using first.
