Heavy rains ease, rescue efforts improve after Hawaii storm

Heavy rains on Kauai let up on Monday, which helped emergency workers better rescue people stranded by flooding on the Hawaiian island.

By Monday afternoon, emergency crews evacuated 152 people by helicopter, 121 people by bus and others by water, according to the governor's office.

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding along Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding along Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

Officials were warning people who wanted to be evacuated that it's not known when they can return because of landslides blocking Kuhio Highway on the island's north shore.

Forty people, mostly tourists, were stuck since Saturday night at a Red Cross shelter in an elementary school in the north shore town of Hanalei. Plans to airlift them out of the school, which was surrounded by water, were abandoned because severe weather grounded helicopters, said Coralie Matayoshi, CEO of American Red Cross of Hawaii.

On Sunday night, another 21 people made their way to the shelter on personal watercraft and boats, she said. The shelter earlier had run out of food and water, but received adequate provisions Sunday, she said.

By the afternoon, flood waters receded enough for a bus to take them to another shelter, the Red Cross said.

An estimated 30 campers were stranded in the Napali Coast State Wilderness Park on Monday. State parks officials were coordinating with county and state emergency workers about prioritizing rescue missions.

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding along Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding in Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. and Hawaii Gov. Davide Ige assessed damage and rescue needs by helicopter on Monday.

"While we have a long road to recovery ahead of us, we are incredibly grateful for everyone who has stepped to the plate to help in one way or another," Carvalho said.

There were no reports of major injuries. At least two houses on the north shore completely washed off their foundations, county spokeswoman Sarah Blane said. The houses were vacant, she said.

The Red Cross said volunteers knew of four destroyed homes in Wainiha, on the north shore, and there are probably more homes damaged in Koloa, on the south side, based on aerial photos.

In this Sunday, morning, April 15, 2018 photo, Anahola resident Devin Ruiz, right, washes down equipment, as Steve Evans and Rocia Amir work to salvage the mate harvest in Anahola, Hawaii, after the Anahola River broke its banks in the pre-dawn hours and flooded the community downstream. (Dennis Fujimoto/The Garden Island via AP)

This image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast guard shows flooding in Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii, Sunday, April 15, 2018. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

"It's definitely the worst storm in recent memory," Blane said.

Some residents said it was worse than Hurricane Iniki in 1992.

The National Weather Service recorded 28.1 inches (71.3 centimeters) of rainfall in Hanalei between 2 a.m. Saturday and 2 a.m. Sunday. The record for a 24-hour period in Hanalei was set in 2012 at 28.54 inches (72.49 centimeters). "It's highly likely that the record was broken by heavy rainfall after the gauge stopped recording," said meteorologist Chevy Chevalier. The weather service is trying to figure out why the gauge stopped recording, he said.

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding along Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

This Sunday, April 15, 2018 image taken from video provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows flooding along Kauai's Hanalei Bay, Hawaii. Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued an emergency proclamation for the island where heavy rainfall damaged or flooded dozens of homes in Hanalei, Wainiha, Haena and Anahola. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Verdura/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

Meredith Zietz, who was still trapped in her Hanalei home Monday, posted video of a skittish bison as it dashed through her waterlogged yard.

"It was amazing. It looked scared though," she said. She said she believed it was from a buffalo farm near the Hanalei River.

Nearby in Haena, James Hennessy maneuvered his flooded, murky street on a standup paddleboard to check on neighbors.

In this Sunday, April 15, 2018 photo, water floods the the Wailua Golf Course in Lihue, Hawaii, forcing the closure of the nearby Kuhio Highway. (Dennis Fujimoto/The Garden Island via AP)

In this Sunday, April 15, 2018 photo, Kelii Kinney checks on his flood damage property in Anahola, Hawaii, after the Anahola River broke its banks in the pre-dawn hours and flooded the community downstream. (Dennis Fujimoto/The Garden Island via AP)

"We really can't go anywhere," he said, adding that he's was grateful to have electricity, even though there was no water or internet service.

Jeff Culverhouse, manager and partner of a Hanalei strip mall, was wishing for a hot shower as he pumped water out of elevators Monday. Every shop in the mall had 4 to 6 inches (10.16 to 15.24 centimeters) of water and thick mud, he said, though the Big Save Market was open.

In this Sunday, morning, April 15, 2018 photo, a car is wedged between a house and debris in Anahola, Hawaii, after the Anahola River broke its banks in the pre-dawn hours and flooded the community downstream. (Dennis Fujimoto/The Garden Island via AP)

In this Sunday, morning, April 15, 2018 photo, a car is wedged between a house and debris in Anahola, Hawaii, after the Anahola River broke its banks in the pre-dawn hours and flooded the community downstream. (Dennis Fujimoto/The Garden Island via AP)

"The place is a freaking mess, to say the least," he said.

LONDON (AP) — Thousands of homes and businesses across northern France and southern England were without power Friday morning and residents faced widespread travel delays after a storm swept in off the Atlantic, bringing high winds, rain and snow to the region.

The low-pressure system, named Storm Goretti, pummeled the Isles of Scilly overnight, with wind gusts up to 99 mph (159 kph) recorded in the archipelago off the southwestern tip of England. Local government officials reported blocked roads, unstable buildings and power outages that left some people without water.

More than 57,000 were without power across southwestern England, the Midlands and Wales, according to National Grid, which runs the country’s electricity transmission network.

As the storm moved across the United Kingdom, it collided with an existing mass of Arctic air, bringing snow to northern areas and heavy rain to the south.

That extended the misery in northern Scotland, where snowplows have been working overtime to keep roads open after more than a half-meter (around 20 inches) of snow fell earlier in the week. More than 250 schools across Scotland were closed on Friday, with some remaining shut for a fifth straight day.

National Rail warned people across the U.K. to check before traveling, because the storm had disrupted services across England, Scotland and Wales. Birmingham Airport, which closed briefly because of snow, said that it had reopened with “reduced runway operations.”

The disruptions came after the Met Office, Britain’s national weather service, issued a rare red weather warning — its highest — in southwestern England for Thursday evening.

Red warnings are issued when the forecaster considers it “very likely” that there will be life-threatening conditions.

Strong winds from Storm Goretti also battered northwestern France on Friday.

No major damage was reported, but some 320,000 homes were still without power at midday, down from 380,000 earlier, national power grid operator Enedis said. Most of the outages were concentrated in the Normandy region.

France’s national weather service, Météo-France, had issued weather warnings before the storm, urging residents to remain home. An overnight wind gust of up to 213 kph (132 mph) was recorded in Gatteville-le-Phare in Normandy.

Regional train services were suspended across northwestern France, with disruptions expected to last at least until Friday afternoon. High-speed rail services were operating, and authorities said they anticipated minimal impact on flights at Paris airports.

A cold spell was still gripping the broader continent on Friday, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, where temperatures in some places dropped to double-digit negatives at night.

Heavy snowfall on Friday morning that hit Prague and western parts of the Czech Republic caused traffic disruptions in the capital and elsewhere. Some flights have been delayed, and others were canceled, at Prague Vaclav Havel Airport.

The major D5 highway that leads from Prague to Germany was blocked by trucks at two places near the German border for hours while public transportation in the Czech capital came to a standstill in some parts of the city.

In neighboring Germany, rail operator Deutsche Bahn halted its long-distance rail service for the north of the country stranding thousands of travelers. Many roads and rail connections elsewhere in the country were also affected by high winds and heavy snowfall. Public bus transportation was canceled in many regions and schools stayed shut in some areas.

Two people died in a head-on collision between two cars in Bavaria, when one of the cars skidded, presumably because of the winter weather. In the Upper Palatinate region, a driver was killed when his car veered off the road and crashed into a tree, German news agency dpa reported.

Ferry services on the North Sea coast of Lower Saxony have largely come to a standstill, as several islands became inaccessible by boat because of strong easterly winds, including Langeoog, Spiekeroog, Norderney, and Wangerooge, dpa reported.

Leipzig’s soccer game at Hamburg’s St. Pauli in the German Bundesliga on Saturday was called off because of heavy snow, with other games in doubt. Despite efforts over several days to clear the snow, difficulties removing it from the roof of the stadium were a particular concern, St. Pauli said.

Karel Janicek in Prague, and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin, contributed to this report.

A pedestrian walks along the banks of the Neris river as temperatures dipped to -12 degrees Celsius (10,4 degrees Fahrenheit) in Vilnius, Lithuania, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)

A Eurowings aircraft is de-iced at Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, Germany, Friday Jan. 9, 2026. (Christophe Gateau/dpa via AP)

People cross the medieval Charles Bridge after a heavy snowfall in Prague, Czech Republic, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

People cross the medieval Charles Bridge during a heavy snowfall in Prague, Czech Republic, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A man clears snow from a walking path during a heavy snowfall in Prague, Czech Republic, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Vehicles covered in snow are parked in Dowlais, near Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, as Storm Goretti continues in the UK. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP)