Hawaii expects lots of snow, questions about it

HONOLULU — The summits of Hawaii’s Big Island could get more than 2 feet of snow, with a winter storm warning in effect through today.

Yes, it snows in Hawaii, National Weather Service meteorologist Matthew Foster, in Honolulu, said he explained to surprised out-of-state callers Friday.

“Typically when we get these snow events, it does get a lot of attention,” he said, adding that he explains to curious callers that the snow is falling in a small, remote area where there are mainly telescopes and scientists. “We do have very high mountains here.”

Once they realize the heights of the mountains, snow in the Island State makes a little more sense, said Ryan Lyman, forecast meteorologist with the Mauna Kea Weather Center. Mauna Kea is nearly 14,000 feet above sea level.

The weather service forecasts new accumulations of 20 to 30 inches Friday through today. Temperatures are in the mid-20s to lower-30s.

That’s a lot of snow, but not uncommon for the summits. Lyman said storms have dropped 30 to 36 inches in recent winters.

It’s enough snow to shut down operations on Mauna Kea, Lyman said. The mountain’s access road is expected to remain closed until next week, he said.

The weather service doesn’t keep track of what the record amounts of snowfall are on the summits. Heavy snow is often accompanied by wind, creating drifts that make it difficult to accurately measure snowfall, Lyman said.