Hawaii Prepares for Rare Hurricane as Indonesia Quake Kills 38

Residents across Hawaii’s Big Island faced the prospect of the first hurricane landfall there in more than 150 years, while survivors in Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara province searched rubble for the dead after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake. Tropical Storm Lala, located 275 miles east-southeast of South Point on Friday afternoon, was forecast by the National Hurricane Center to reach hurricane strength before approaching the island Saturday, with maximum sustained winds already at 65 mph and expected to climb above the 74 mph threshold. Officials opened shelters, canceled events, and urged people in unpermitted rural structures to seek stronger buildings, citing risks of 8 to 12 inches of rain, localized totals near 25 inches, mudslides, and storm surge. Governor Josh Green declared a state of emergency, and state Rep. Jeanné Kapela warned that recent March flooding had left communities especially exposed. In Indonesia the same morning, the U.S. Geological Survey recorded the shallow quake 42 miles north-northwest of Ende at a depth of six miles; Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency reported at least 38 bodies recovered, mostly from Sikka, Manggarai, and East Manggarai regencies, with 13 people hospitalized and roughly 2,000 villagers in Nagekeo fleeing to shelters. A brief tsunami warning was lifted after no significant sea-level changes were detected. Power outages and landslides that blocked the Trans-Flores highway slowed rescue efforts, and aftershocks continued. Both events occurred in an El Niño year, when Pacific hurricane activity and seismic risk along the Ring of Fire tend to rise, though forecasters and disaster officials stressed that preparation and rapid response remain the immediate priorities.