Tropical storm watch for Hawaii County as Hurricane Ignacio approaches islands

HONOLULU – A tropical storm watch has been issued for the Big Island as a strengthening Hurricane Ignacio approaches Hawaii.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports (http://bit.ly/1KtLIjE ) that Ignacio was a major hurricane early Saturday morning, with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph.

A watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible in the next 48 hours. Early Saturday, Ignacio was about 625 miles east-southeast of Hilo

The Central Pacific Hurricane Center says other islands may be added to the tropical storm watch later Saturday.

Forecasters say Ignacio is expected to pass north of the islands in the coming week but warn that there is still uncertainty about the storm's path.

Gov. David Ige signed an emergency proclamation anticipating the storm Friday.

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This story has been corrected to show that the hurricane's name is Ignacio.

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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com