East Island (Hawaii)

East Island is a low-lying, uninhabited island located within the French Frigate Shoals, a crescent-shaped atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Situated approximately 550 miles (890 km) northwest of Honolulu, the island is composed primarily of sand and gravel and is part of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Once measuring about one-half mile (800 m) in length and 400 feet (120 m) in width, it covered an area of roughly 11 acres (45,000 m²) before much of it was washed away by Hurricane Walaka in 2018. Despite this loss, a reduced form of the island remains and continues to serve an important ecological function as one of the principal nesting sites in Hawaii for the green sea turtle, supporting over half of all nests within the French Frigate Shoals, and as a pupping and haul-out site for the endangered Hawaiian monk seal. It also provides habitat for multiple ground-nesting seabird species, including albatrosses, shearwaters, and terns.

The island has a limited record of human use. It was surveyed during the American Tanager Expedition in the 1920s and was later used intermittently by the United States Navy for aerial reconnaissance and seaplane operations. During World War II, it was selected as the site of a Coast Guard Long-Range Navigation (LORAN) station, a radio-based navigation system used to determine a vessel or aircraft's position. The station operated from 1944 until its decommissioning in 1952. East Island was included in the Hawaiian Islands Bird Reservation in 1909, bringing it under United States federal protection and placing it within the Territory of Hawaii, though it had not been part of the former Kingdom of Hawaii. Since the closure of the LORAN station, the island has remained uninhabited and has been the focus of scientific research and conservation related to its wildlife populations.

In October 2018, East Island was struck directly by Hurricane Walaka, a Category 4 storm that passed over the atoll. The storm surge and wave action caused severe erosion, reducing the island to a narrow sandbar approximately 150 feet (50 m) long. Although initially believed to have been permanently lost, satellite imagery and field observations in subsequent years revealed partial recovery. By 2024, natural sediment transport had restored roughly 60 percent of East Island's former land area, and wildlife, including nesting turtles and monk seals, had begun to reoccupy the site in significant numbers.