HAWAII ISLAND – A Flash Flood Warning is now in effect for North Hawaii until 8:15 p.m. HST.

The National Weather Service report that at 5:18 pm HST… Radar showed heavy rain 7 miles southeast of Hawi, or about 39 miles north of Kailua-Kona. The area of heavy rain was nearly stationary, NWS says.

Hawaii County Civil Defense reports Kohala Mountain Road is closed due to water covering the road at mile marker 9 and a half. North Kohala traffic is being detoured through the Kohala Ranch Subdivision.

Other locations in the warning include but are not limited to Mahukona and Waipio Valley.

The entire Island of Hawaii is under a Flash Flood Watch as unstable and very moist air mass remains across the main Hawaiian islands. “This tropical moisture interacting with island terrain will produce localized, intense and slow moving heavy rains that may lead to flash flooding,” states the National Weather Service. The flash flood watch will remain in effect through 6:00 p.m. tomorrow Monday August 24th.