Drivers heading north of Hilo on Saturday night ran into a familiar kind of Big Island traffic jam: a landslide on the Hāmākua stretch of the Hawaiʻi Belt Road that brought Highway 19 near Laupāhoehoe Gulch to a halt. The slide blocked the roadway and forced late-night delays as crews moved in to start clearing the mess, while officials pushed out updates on social media.
Crews responding at Laupāhoehoe Gulch
According to a post by the Hawaii Department of Transportation on X, crews were responding to a landslide on Highway 19 at Laupāhoehoe Gulch late Saturday. The department listed the incident time as 10:11 p.m. HST and did not include any estimate for when the road might fully reopen.
Contraflow and delays earlier near Paʻauilo
It was already a rough evening along the corridor. Earlier Saturday, the Hawaiʻi Police Department urged motorists to steer clear of Highway 19 near Paʻauilo after a separate landslide. Traffic near mile marker 36 was shifted into contraflow, and drivers were warned to expect delays, according to Big Island Now. That report noted there were no injuries.
Storms raised the risk
None of this came out of the blue. Forecasts and advisories in the days before the slide flagged heavy rain and flash flooding across the islands, with forecasters specifically calling out the Hāmākua coast as a trouble spot. A First Alert Weather Day designation and a statewide Flood Watch were issued ahead of the system, as summarized by Hawaii News Now. The County of Hawaiʻi also urged residents in a Feb. 6 notice to prepare for heavy rain and gusty winds.
Recurring hazard on the Hamakua coast
Laupāhoehoe and its neighboring gulches have a long track record of trouble during big storms, with slides that can shut lanes and force contraflow while crews dig out the highway. Local outlets have documented similar closures in recent years, including multi-hour cleanups after slides in 2021 and 2022. See reporting by Big Island Video News and Big Island Now for background on past closures.
What drivers should know
For now, motorists are being told to avoid the affected stretch of Highway 19 while crews finish clearing debris, and to stick with official channels for the latest word on lane closures and detours. The Hawaii Department of Transportation posts road condition updates on its website and social feeds. For real-time advisories and travel guidance, check the Hawaii Department of Transportation advisories page.
