Hawaii News Now

Hawaii continues to get battered by drenching rains, which have caused flooding and headaches all week.

Hawaii saw one new COVID fatality on Friday, pushing the death toll from the virus in Hawaii to 449.

There were also 66 new cases statewide. Of those, 30 were on Oahu, 21 on Maui, and 15 on the Big Island.

Since the pandemic began, Hawaii has seen 28,145 infections. In the last 14 days, there have been 689 cases reported in the islands.

As of Friday, the state had administered 447,917 vaccine doses. About 19% of the population has received at least one dose.

A massive landslide caused by severe weather cut off the only road to Hanalei on Kauai. Crews are clearing it, but it will take days to remove the debris as heavy rains continue.

Under a “best case scenario,” it will take state and county crews five days to partially clear a massive landslide on Kuhio Highway that’s cut off north shore communities of Kauai from Hanalei to Haena, Deputy Director for Highways Ed Sniffen said.

A major landslide onto Kuhio Highway has cut off communities from Hanalei to Haena with no timeline for the thoroughfare to reopen.

The landslide was reported Thursday morning and state Transportation Department crews have been deployed. They say debris is continuing to come off the slope.

Kauai County officials said it’s expected to take a day for conditions to stabilize in order for personnel to fully assess the scale of the landslide and begin debris removal.

A big cleanup effort is underway in Haleiwa. Businesses are planning to bring in heavy equipment to clear out piles of debris washed down by floodwaters.

Oahu started to clean up Wednesday following significant flooding that left behind a path of damage.

A broad evacuation order for Haleiwa town was lifted late Tuesday as the threat of “catastrophic flooding” from torrential rains subsided.

While the heavy rains started to let up by early evening, water levels in swollen waterways were slower to recede — and authorities warned severe flooding was still a possibility.

The order was lifted about 11:30 p.m. — seven hours after it was issued.

A flash flood warning that was in effect for much of the day also expired around 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. But with the ground so saturated, National Weather Service forecasters warned that any rains could trigger flooding.

Hawaii is recovering after severe weather battered parts of the state, but authorities warn that the threat of heavy rain and flooding continues.

The top stories from across Hawaii and around the world, as seen and heard on 'First at 4 p.m.' from Hawaii News Now — anchored by Ashley Nagaoka and Mark Carpenter.