An unusual meteorological event known as a Fujiwhara Effect—a sort of mid-ocean do-si-do movement of two hurricanes—could alter the course of a pair of storms in the Central Pacific Ocean and steer at least one of them away from Hawaii and its 1.4 million residents.
As of midday Wednesday, the center of Hurricane Madeline was about 350 miles east-southeast of Honolulu, Hawaii’s state capital and largest city. Meanwhile, Hurricane Lester’s eye was trailing Madeline and was about 1,275 miles east of Honolulu. Madeline’s strongest winds were blowing at about 80 miles per hour, while Lester’s peak winds had reached 135 miles per hour.
The state of Hawaii is composed of eight major islands and many smaller ones. The state takes its name from the island of Hawaii, the easternmost island in the chain and the largest. Honolulu is on the island of Oahu, about 210 miles west of Hilo, the largest city on the island of Hawaii.