More Than 5,500 Residents Ordered To Evacuate In Hawaii Over Dodgy Dam

Authored by T.J. Muscaro via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

More than 5,500 people on Hawaii’s most populous island have been ordered to evacuate on March 20 as weather conditions continue to worsen and threaten the integrity of a 120-year-old dam.

That island, Oahu, which is home to the capital, Honolulu, is forecast to face severe rains capable of bringing risks of flash flooding and landslides over the next several days. The National Weather Service predicted that Oahu could receive four to 10 inches of rain between March 20 and March 23. This comes after the island received more than 26 inches of rain between March 10 and March 16.

The life-threatening inundation is affecting much of the archipelago.

“Much of the state is already saturated with rain from last week’s storm, and this additional rain will bring a major risk of flash flooding and landslides,” Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency stated on X, urging residents and visitors to sign up for local emergency alerts.

🚨Incredible images of the Spillway, Wahiawa Reservoir (Lake Wilson), upstream from the Wahiawa Dam in Hawaii.

DAM/LEVEE FAILURE IN PROGRESS OR EXPECTED at WAHIAWA DAM. Potential life-threatening flooding of downstream areas.

📸Permission: Jacob Vandervelde pic.twitter.com/JymFmegErI

— Live Storm Chasers (@LiveStormChaser) March 20, 2026

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said in an afternoon press conference that dozens, if not hundreds, of homes had been damaged, but no official damage assessment had been completed by that point.

Along with the thousands of evacuations, dozens of people have had to be airlifted to safety, and hundreds more were bused to different shelters.

But this rain has brought an extra risk to towns along the island’s north shore, as Honolulu officials warned that the Wahiawa Dam was “at risk of imminent failure.” That order and warning was first issued at 5:35 a.m. Hawaiian time, and Oahu Emergency Management stated at 1:03 p.m. that the dam had not failed, but the risk of failure and a “potential life-threatening flooding of downstream areas” remained.

The dam was built in 1906 to increase sugar production for the Waialua Agricultural Company, which would become owned by the Dole Food Company. The dam collapsed in 1921 and was rebuilt. Dole agreed to transfer ownership of the dam to the state, which wants to spend more than $20 million on improvements, but the transfer has yet to be completed.

“The dam continues to operate as designed with no indications of damage,” Dole said in a statement, adding that it was working closely with authorities to monitor the dam. “We encourage all to follow instructions from local and state authorities and stay vigilant during this storm.”

The evacuation zone covers a swathe of the northwest shoreline from Kawailoa Beach to Ka‘ena Point State Park, and includes the Dillingham Airfield, as well as the town of Waialua.

Meanwhile, a flash flood warning remains in effect for the entire southeast half of the island. That warning area includes Honolulu, Pearl City, Kahalu‘u, Nanakuli, Makakilo, and Waimanalo.

Elsewhere, the island of Maui Nui is expected to get eight to 15 inches of rain by March 23, the Island of Hawaii—also known as “the Big Island”—is expected to get two to six inches, and Kaua‘i will get up to three inches.

Hawai’i: Extensive flooding across Waialua’s agricultural fields as the Kona Low continues to hit the North Shore hard. Devastating for the local farming community.

Maui’s tallest peak, Haleakalā, has seen a staggering 32.39 inches of rain in the last 24 hours.

The entire… pic.twitter.com/PyPEA1LzGW

— Paul White Gold Eagle (@PaulGoldEagle) March 17, 2026

Residents were advised to move immediately to higher ground and warned that some roads would become impassable.

“There’s no question that the damage done thus far has been catastrophic,” Blangiardi said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.