Hawaii County Civil Defense 8:30 a.m. audio message on Tropical Storm Ela

At 5 a.m. Thursday (July 9) Tropical Storm Ela was located about 584 miles east of Hilo and was moving in a northwest direction at 13 mph.

Ela currently has maximum sustained winds of 40 mph with higher gusts. Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 80 miles from the center.

There are no watches or warnings due to this weather system.

Although the system is forecast to track north of the state, it will bring very moist tropical air over the state. This moist air will begin to move southeast to northwest over the state Friday bringing muggy conditions with localized heavy rain and a slight chance of thunderstorms. This weekend there will be times where the heat index is expected to reach 100ºF. Don’t forget to stay hydrated! Another round of tropical air is likely to move over the state Monday, possibly prolonging the weekend’s humid weather.

Hurricane season in Hawaii runs from June through November.

For a reminder of how to prepare for a possible hurricane read this or go to our ‘Be Prepared’ menu near the top of this page.

See current National Weather Service tracking image here: http://1.usa.gov/XvUhoT