#West Maui

Hawaiian Electric Co. is conducting an inventory audit of attachments on utility poles throughout Maui, and Oʻahu and Hawai‘i island as well, according to an announcement. Work will begin in parts of West and Central Maui and continue later in South Maui and around the island through November.

Registration is open for the 13th annual Maui 5K Run and Walk, set to take place, rain or shine, from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on March 3, 2024. Participants will receive medals and T-shirts honoring Lahaina.

Ongoing El Niño climate conditions have not generated as much dry weather as expected in the Hawaiian Islands, the Hawaiʻi Drought Council reports.

Kaiser Permanente forecasts an opening as early as mid-March for a temporary West Maui clinic at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort in Kāʻanapali.

Maui police today confirmed the identity of Lydia Coloma, 70, of Lahaina as a victim of the Aug. 8, 2023 wildfire in West Maui. Coloma was previously on a list of unaccounted for individuals, which has now dropped to three people. The latest confirmation completes the public identification process for the 100 known fatalities from the Lahaina fire.

A milestone moment was reached on Wednesday as the first residential property was cleared of wildfire debris on Fleming Road in Lahaina. This comes following months of coordinated reentry activities that allowed residents to gain access to their properties and assess damage. Debris removal from residential properties in Lahaina began on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024.

Maui Firefighter Tanner Mosher was honored with a ceremonial resolution on Friday for his heroism during the Aug. 8, 2023 wildfire in Lahaina. Mosher extended his gratitude to the community and apologies to the people of Lahaina saying he felt like it wasn’t enough. “I don’t feel like I would have made the choices I made if it wasn’t for my friend and coworker Tre’ Evans-Dumaran,” said Mosher.

OP-ED: Senator Angus McKelvey (District 6, West Maui, Mā‘alaea, Waikapū, South Maui) issued a statement responding to Governor Green and Mayor Bissen’s interim housing plan for Maui wildfire survivors.

Maui County, Hawai‘i County and the City and County of Honolulu will receive more than $18 million in federal grants from the US Department of Transportation for projects to improve safety on roads and sidewalks, US Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) announced.

Hawaiʻi’s Castle Hospitality Group will manage the newly renovated Nāpili Surf Beach Resort on Maui’s scenic Nāpili Bay.

The pin, named after the Hawaiian phrase “Mālama Maui,” signifying “Caring for Maui,” hopes to offer solace to residents while providing guidance for visitors. Its fundamental purpose is to establish a supportive environment for residents by offering a visual cue to visitors, signifying the importance of refraining from inquiring about the experiences of Maui residents, thus respecting their privacy.

Hui O Ka Wai Ola increased its response to the Lahaina wildfires by launching four additional coastal water testing sites in West Maui (Māla Tavern, Māla Ramp, Papalaua Street, and Lahaina Harbor) and by hiring the organization’s first Fire Response Team Lead.

Council member Tamara Paltin introduced Bill 95 (2023), which she said would exempt properties destroyed or rendered uninhabitable by the August wildfires from property taxes and create an incentive for hotels and short-term rentals to house residents displaced by the fires.

An online petition demanding a delay to the planned reopening of West Maui to tourism on Oct. 8, has garnered more than 10,000 signatures.

West Maui’s golf courses are reopening after the recent wildfires as Kā‘anapali and Kapalua Golf, along with Wailea Golf Club in South Maui, remain unaffected by the fires.

Nearly 150 people from keiki to kūpuna — many who have lost loved ones, homes and businesses in the Aug. 8 fire — testified before the Maui County Council in Kāʻanapali about the resolution to develop a recovery and resiliency plan in response to the Maui fires.

Three Soil & Water Conservation Districts and the County of Maui are working with the federal Emergency Watershed Protection Program to quickly address widescale environmental damage caused by the August wildfires.

The Maui County Council’s Government Relations, Ethics and Transparency Committee will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. at The Westin Maui Resort and Spa in Kāʻanapali in the Honoapi‘ilani Ballroom, to receive testimony on a resolution to develop a comprehensive recovery and resiliency plan in response to the August wildfires.

Eight staff in the Parks department lost their homes to the fire, but worked to ensure the beach park could reopen so families could enjoy it over the weekend.

The Maui Police Department identified six more victims of the Aug. 8 Lahaina fire on Sunday: Michael Morinho, 61; Ediomede Pavian Castillo, 35; Alfred Rawlings, 84; Maria Victoria Recolizado, 51; Justin Recolizado, 11; and Terri Thomas, 62. All were from Lahaina.