Kapaa hotel guests evacuate as Hurricane Lowell intensifies
By Kristen Consillio
Click here for updates on this story
KAPA’A, Hawai’i (KITV) — Dozens of guests were evacuated on Monday morning in Kapa’a as winds, rain and surf from Hurricane Lowell increased in intensity within hours.
“We basically just checked in last night and we’re having to check out cause it’s getting kind of bad I guess,” a Texas man said.
The last remaining guests here at the ISO Hotel in Kapa’a are evacuating after waking up to knocks on their door to pack up and leave.
“We were actually heading to the grocery store it’s about 40 minutes away and they told us that we had to come back and evacuate,” said Leticia Venegas, a Texas visitor. “They said we gotta evacuate by 11.”
The ISO Hotel warned guests about the threat and rapidly deteriorating conditions, but many were left with limited options. A couple of schools nearby were designated as refuge shelters.
“They told us to go to two different places either a middle school gym or a high school gym,” Venegas continued,
And with the storm expected to worsen overnight and uncertainty of how bad it will be, many on Kauai are scrambling to find a place of safety.
“We’re trying to see if we can go try and find somewhere else to stay. We don’t know the area so we’re basically just stuck here,” Venegas said. “It feels like it’s going to get bad, so you do worry. You’re far from home so if anything happens, it’s one of those things that you’re just going to have to deal with it as it comes.”
Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.