Hurricane Iniki was the 10th hurricane and the 7th major hurricane of the 1992 Pacific hurricane season . The eye of Hurricane Iniki passed directly over the island of Kauai on September 11 , 1992 , as a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale . It was the first hurricane to hit the state since Hurricane Iwa in the 1982 season , and the first major hurricane since Hurricane Dot in 1959 .