1 Jun 2018

Central Pacific urged to prepare for hurricane season

6:20 am on 1 June 2018

The US National Weather Service says there's a 40 percent chance of more tropical cyclones than normal in the central Pacific region in the next six months.

The official hurricane season begins tomorrow in the central Pacific region, which includes Hawai'i, and runs through until the end of November.

NASA Rarth Observatory image shows on August 5, both Iselle (L) and Hurricane Julio (R) en route to Hawaii.

In 2014, Hawaii was impacted by two hurricanes in close sucession in August 2014 Photo: AFP / NASA EARTH OBSERVATORY / HANDOUT

According to the National Weather Service, this year's outlook projects three to six tropical cyclones with a 40 percent chance of an above-normal season.

There's a 40 percent chance of a normal season with four or five tropical depressions, storms or hurricanes, and a 20 percent chance of a below-normal season.

The Kaua'i Emergency Management Agency Administrator Elton Ushio urged the Hawaiian public to plan and be prepared for potential storms.

He said that after the April flood and landslide disaster, the immediate pressing need for food and water was something Hawaii could learn from in preparation for future natural disasters.