 Hurricane Dot of August 1959 was at its time the costliest tropical cyclone in Hawaiian history . Dot was first identified as a strong tropical storm southeast of Hawaiʻi on August 1 . The storm was potentially a continuation of a previously unnamed tropical cyclone that was monitored west of the Baja California Peninsula from July 24 @-@ 27 , but was never confirmed due to a lack of ship reports . Dot was quick to intensify , reaching hurricane intensity six hours after naming . By August 3 , Dot reached its peak intensity , with maximum sustained winds reaching 150 mph ( 240 km / h ) . <unk> leveled off afterwards as Dot tracked westward before making a curve towards the northwest on August 5 , after which the hurricane weakened at a faster clip . Dot made landfall the next day on Kauai as a minimal hurricane before dissipating west of the Hawaiian Islands on August 8 . 
