The Island of Kawaii

Cauai courts travellers to island recovering from all-time precipitation

Inhabitants and companies are still clearing up the floods that have flooded parts of Kauai, but local authorities are pushing tourism to go further so that people do not experience an economical disaster that suffocates a normally verdant countryside in redbrown color. A number of travellers cancel their bookings after they had the false perception that the floods in mid-April had caused damage to the whole of Hawaii.

Despite mudslides blocking streets and flooding destroying houses and unrooted tree life, most of the island is intact. A few travellers avoid the northern bank of the island, where rapid water washed away automobiles, although many stores were re-opened. The island's largest industrial sector is the tourist sector, and most local eateries and stores depend on visitors' expenses to keep them above water, which provides employment for tens of thousand of Kauai people.

Mel Rapozo, Kauai County Council Chairman, who works as an accountant for the overnight stay, said that some people were prevented from cancelling their travels, but that others canceled them on-line without talking to anyone. It would be an "economic catastrophe" if Kauai lost many people to a slowing down of the tourist industry.

Avoid Hanalei, a small historical city and the trade centre on the northern bank of the island, although many of the city's streets are pedestrian-friendly and many stores and bars are in operation or being reopened. Christina Zhu from Seattle, who is hoping to go snorkeling and hiking when she and her friend come to Kauai early next week, was not deterred by the stories of the floods.

She researched what to do by looking through the instructions and the Reddit page for Kauai for the latest messages. She is looking forward to taking a Kauai Humane Society animal home canine on a tour, perhaps on a dog-friendly outing. "Floods or not, I'm sure there will be a lot to do on the island, and hopefully as a visitor I can help somehow," she said.

Mr Snarksi said Kauai was "business as usual" when he went on Wednesday. "We had a great last sunny and sunny days on the island," Snarksi said in an e-mail on the flight home. According to the NWD, provisional figures indicate that Kauai has broken a nationwide precipitation rate after a doctrine noted a 49 miles east of Hanalei.

Haena and Wainiha on the northern bank of the island are off the map until at least next months, as landslips are cutting off the Kuhio Highway, the only highway that connects them to the island.