Urban Honolulu Hurricane Preparedness: Hurricane Shutters Rules (2026)

The City and County of Honolulu adopts the IBC and IRC with Hawaii amendments to address hurricane risk — though direct hurricane landfalls on Oahu are historically rare, Hurricane Iniki (1992) and near-misses including Hurricane Lane (2018) prompted rigorous building standards. Under the Honolulu Building Code, the design wind speed for residential structures is set at 130+ mph (exact value per ASCE 7 risk category and location), and Oahu's coastal and ridge-exposed sites fall in wind-borne debris regions. Exterior glazed openings in wind-borne debris regions must be protected against impact by one of three methods: impact-rated windows and doors tested to ASTM E1886 (test method) and ASTM E1996 (performance standard) and labeled accordingly; installed shutters rated for the design pressure and impact; or, for one and two family dwellings only, structural wood panels (min. 7/16 inch plywood) installed over openings using the IRC prescriptive method. Shutter systems include accordion, roll-down, colonial, Bahama, and removable storm panel types. All installed shutters must have Florida Building Code or Miami-Dade NOA approval accepted by DPP, as these are the most common recognized test standards. Retrofitting of existing homes is voluntary but strongly encouraged, and hardened openings also reduce insurance costs. The Hurricane Iniki Recovery era established ongoing state hazard mitigation investment, and the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund historically incentivized retrofitting.