Hawaii Flood Damage Worst in Hanalei

The Hanalei community on Kauai was hit with 13 inches of rain in 24 hours last week, and bore the brunt of the storm’s flood damage.

County officials say it will cost $500,000 to repair a pipeline that brings water from Princeville on the island’s northern side, under the Hanalei River, to the town of Hanalei.

They say the county’s water system suffered another $376,000 in other damage.

State and federal regulators last week approved a $2.6 million repair to a damaged Hanalei River diversion that was knocked out. The area’s entire taro crop is threatened because it is getting too little irrigation

Kauai supplies 80 percent of the state’s taro, a staple in many Pacific Ocean cultures.

Only a few businesses and homes reported damages from the storm.