Epic deluge in Kauai may have broken all-time U.S. rainfall record, with 4 feet in 24 hours

A devastating flash flood event in mid-April caused widespread damage on the lush Hawaiian island of Kauai. Now comes word that during the 24-hour period between April 14 and 15, a staggering 49.69 inches of rain fell at a rain gauge about 1 mile west of Hanalei.

If this amount is verified by the National Climatic Extremes Committee, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and serves as a sort of Guinness Book of World Records for weather and climate, it would be the heaviest 24-hour rainfall total ever recorded in the U.S. 

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