Aug. 6, 2014 4:44 p.m. ET
Hawaii's residents scrambled Wednesday to stock up on water, propane and other emergency supplies as the approach of a rare pair of tropical storms prompted warnings of possible damaging winds, flooding and power outages.
As of midday Wednesday, Hurricane Iselle was forecast by U.S. officials to weaken to a tropical storm and cross over the Big Island of Hawaii late Thursday with sustained top winds of 50 to 60 miles an hour and five to 8 inches of rain. Its projected track would then take it over or near Maui and Oahu, the state's most populous island.
Behind Iselle is Hurricane Julio, which is also projected to weaken to a tropical storm before passing just north of the Hawaiian Islands on Sunday. It will come close enough to possibly inflict more damage, said Tom Evans, meteorologist with the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu.
Mr. Evans said the rare occurrence of back-to-back tropical disturbances, which he attributed in part to warming waters from a developing El Niño cycle in the Pacific, could compound problems for the islands, where Hurricane Iniki in 1992 killed six and caused an estimated $1.8 billion in damage.
"With Julio a couple of days out [behind Iselle], Hawaii won't have time to recover," Mr. Evans said.
Despite Iselle's weakening, officials Wednesday warned the state's 1.4 million residents to take such precautionary measures as assembling a seven-day survival kit of water, food and other essentials. They also have closed popular campsites and hiking trails across the state. Airlines have waived rebooking fees for tourists who want to leave early or postpone trips.
Retailers have reported running low on many items. On the Big Island, KTA Super Stores imposed a limit of two 36-bottle cases of water in its six outlets to keep from running out, said Debbie Arita, an administrative assistant. In Honolulu's Kaimuki neighborhood, the City Mill hardware store ran out of lanterns and batteries Wednesday and has had long lines of people waiting for propane, said Lei Gunderson, a supervisor.
Honolulu Emergency Management spokesman John Cummings said his agency's biggest concern is for about 80,000 people living along east- and south-facing beaches where waves are forecast to rise as high as 15 feet. Evacuation shelters, some at schools that are also set to serve as polling places for a primary election Saturday, are on standby to open if needed, he said.
The vote Saturday is to decide the fates of two incumbent Democrats, Gov. Neil Abercrombie and U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz.
—Alejandro Lazo contributed to this article.
Write to Jim Carlton at jim.carlton@wsj.com
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