Tropical Storm Hone to bring heavy rain and strong wind to Hawaii

Tropical Storm Hone is expected to deliver strong winds and heavy rain to Hawaii this weekend, particularly to the Big Island and Maui, as it passes south of the island chain. Forecasters believe it will strengthen to a Category 1 hurricane for part of the time it skirts past the state.

A tropical storm warning was in effect Saturday for the Big Island, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu.

The August storm has evoked memories of the powerful hurricane south of Hawaii that helped fuel a deadly wildfire that destroyed Maui's Lahaina town during a drought last summer, but the National Weather Service said Hone was not creating the same conditions.

Hone, which means "sweet and soft" in Hawaiian and is pronounced hoe-NEH, was expected to bring sustained winds of 20 to 30 miles per hour and gusts of 50 mph to Maui and the Big Island. Oahu and Kauai were forecast to get slightly weaker winds.

The storm is forecast to bring up to 5 to 10 inches of rain to windward and southeast facing slopes of Hawaii's Big Island between Saturday and Monday, according to the hurricane center, along with up to 4 inches of rain for the windward areas of the smaller islands.

A tropical storm watch was in place for Hawaii County, which covers the Big Island.

Swells generated by Hone were "likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip currents."

The central Pacific hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. The NOAA this year forecast one to four tropical cyclones for the central Pacific region, which is below the average of four or five. A tropical cyclone includes tropical depressions, tropical storms and hurricanes. A tropical cyclone becomes a tropical storm when its maximum sustained winds reach 39 mph, and a hurricane when they reach 74 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Gilma in the eastern Pacific remained a major hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. It had weakened slightly from a Category 3 to a Category 2 storm, meaning it was no longer considered a major hurricane. .

Gilma was trailing behind Hone, located about 1,750 miles east of Hilo and moving west at 9 mph. It was expected to remain a hurricane through the weekend, but will likely weaken, forecasters said.

No coastal watches or warnings were in effect with Gilma. The system strengthened to tropical storm status on Sunday and has grown more powerful since then.

Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 35 miles from the center of Gilma and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 115 miles, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said.