Lowell is now moving away from Hawaii's western islands after hammering the Aloha State as a hurricane early Tuesday.

Lowell did not make landfall on Kauai or Niihau, passing just a few dozen miles west of the islands. But that mattered little, as the storm brought intense winds that knocked out power to more than 60,000 homes and businesses statewide, according to PowerOutage.us.

All of the wind alerts for Hawaii have been discontinued as of now, but flood watches remain.

Those outages were affecting 90% of all customers in Kauai County early Tuesday, meaning most traffic signals aren't working according to officials. Additionally, the county was placed under a tornado watch — the first one ever issued for any part of Hawaii.

(MORE: Here's what's next for Lowell)

And although this was the first tornado watch ever issued for any part of Hawaii, the state isn't immune to twisters. According to the National Weather Service's database, there were at least 42 tornadoes confirmed in the state from 1950 through 2018.

Get More of Our News on Google

Set The Weather Company as a 'Preferred Source' to get quicker access to the news you value.

Emergency officials in Kauai County alerted residents that trees and utility lines were downed and crews are working now to "clear priority roads and restore critical infrastructure."

"Roadways need to be clear so first responders can reach people who need immediate help. Please stay home. Treat every downed line as live," officials shared online.

Mayor of Kauai Derek Kawakami warned that roads are "treacherous and in some areas ... impossible to pass."

Kawakami said that the participation of residents has gone from preparation and sheltering to "gathering data and information to let us know what kind of damage you have faced." He encouraged people to submit damage reports of what they're seeing to help in the recovery efforts.

Residents are also asked to "conserve power and water" are officials work to restore service.

As of 6:30 a.m. 301 people and 38 pets were at the county’s five open refuge areas: Kauaʻi High Gym, Kalāheo Neighborhood Center, Waimea Canyon Middle School, Kīlauea Neighborhood Center and Kapaʻa Middle School.

The Honolulu Police Department also shared reports of waves crashing across all four lanes of a local highway. Police closed Farrington Highway in both directions due to hazardous conditions caused by high surf.

The storm's progression

The islands of Kauai and Niihau were under a hurricane warning early Tuesday, while Oahu, the state's most populated island with close to 1 million residents, was under a tropical storm warning.

The center of the storm passed west of the islands and is moving away. On Kauai, sustained winds measured just above 50 mph at Lihue Airport.

Some wind gusts reached 80 mph, according to the hurricane center. But the force of the sustained winds had decreased by early Tuesday and the storm was expected to weaken in the coming days.

(WATCH: Why Hawaii should worry about storms during an El Niño)

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green closed schools and government offices on the three islands for Tuesday ahead of the storm. Kauai has a population of over 73,000 while Niihau has fewer than 100 permanent residents.

Damaging winds, heavy flooding and dangerous surf were expected across the islands through at least the morning and possibly all day, the National Weather Service warned.

Rainfall totals have exceeded 16 inches in some areas on Kauai so far.

Last month, Tropical Storm Lala brushed past Hawaii and stirred up landslides, washing away about 100 homes and causing widespread power outages.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.