Hurricane Lane strengthens to Category 5

The National Weather Service says Hurricane Lane has strengthened to become a Category 5 hurricane, which means that it is likely to cause catastrophic damage with winds 157 mph or above. The hurricane is about 500 miles southeast of Honolulu.

The weather service says that in a Category 5 hurricane, a high percentage of framed homes will be destroyed. Roofs and walls will collapse. The winds will knock down trees and power poles. The weather service adds that power outages will last for weeks to possibly months and most of an area hit by the hurricane will be uninhabitable for weeks or months.

Earlier Tuesday evening, the weather service issued a hurricane warning for the Big Island.

The weather service also issued a hurricane watch for Maui and other smaller islands, meaning tropical storm-force winds, excessive rain and large swells could arrive starting Wednesday. It’s possible Oahu and Kauai may later be included in an advisory for the hurricane.

Hurricane Lane “is forecast to move dangerously close to the main Hawaiian islands as a hurricane later this week, potentially bringing damaging winds and life-threatening flash flooding from heavy rainfall,” the weather service’s Central Pacific Hurricane Center warned as it got closer to the state.