US House energy subcommittee grills Hawaiian Electric CEO about utility’s role in deadly Lahaina fire

As of this week, about 800 households in non-congregate sheltering had not yet established full eligibility. Those households are receiving a letter asking them to contact the Red Cross within 48 hours, by phone or in person at the hotels where they are staying, to provide the missing information.

A unique plant first seen in the high forests of West Maui in 2020 has now been officially recognized as a new Hawaiian species. The plant, now named Clermontia hanaulaensis, was found during routine surveys by botanist Hank Oppenheimer of the Plant Extinction Prevention Program, a partnership with DLNR and the University of Hawai‘i.

During the first Congressional fact-finding hearing about the deadly Aug. 8 Lahaina fire, members of the US House Energy & Commerce subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations grilled Hawaiian Electric President and CEO Shelee Kimura about de-energizing power lines, wildfire mitigation efforts and replacing above ground lines connected to wood poles with buried lines.

Maui County Federal Credit Union’s Lahaina branch has reopened in a temporary new location at the Fairway Shops in Kāʻanapali at 2580 Kekaʻa Drive, Suite 117, between China Bowl and Keller Williams Realty.

Costumed children and their families are invited to join Imua Family Services at its third Keiki Halloween Festival on Saturday, Oct. 28. Held annually at the Will Smith Imua Discovery Garden in Wailuku, the spooktacular event features live music, activities and goodies offered up by community nonprofit and business partners.

A team of freedivers from the Honolulu-based nonprofit organization Papahānaumokuākea Marine Debris Project returned on Saturday from a 28 day cleanup expedition to the remote Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. 

County of Maui Disaster Area Restrictions will be lifted for owners and residents with vehicle passes from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 2, and Tuesday, Oct. 3, in Zones 2C, 2D and 2E, which includes homes on Kuʻuipo Street, ʻAʻa Street and Lokia Street.

Central Pacific Bank Foundation and Ace Hardware are joining forces to distribute much needed disaster relief and essential cleaning supplies to West Maui residents affected by the Maui wildfires. A distribution will take place on Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (while supplies last) in front of the Ace Hardware location at the Lahaina Gateway Center.

More than 20 students, faculty and staff gathered in the Heona Fine Arts Studio last week to begin work on a new three-panel, 40-foot by 8-foot acrylic on canvas mural. It will be the centerpiece of UH Maui College’s new Student Lounge.

“Like you and I, our people have questions. We all deserve answers. Right now, the most important question must be, how do we keep the help coming?” – US Rep. Jill Tokuda

With construction of the first phase on a path to be completed by the end of the year, Kaulana Mahina—the new workforce housing development in Wailuku—will soon be accepting applications for its lottery process.

“We recognize that even before the Lahaina fire there were conflicts between commercial vessel operations, especially at Māla Wharf, and community recreational users. For this reason, we are encouraging fishers, commercial vessel operators, and interested community members to attend this informational meeting so everyone can share and hear respective interests and concerns at the same time before decisions are made,” said Chang.

Maui County Federal Credit Union’s Lahaina branch has reopened in a temporary new location at the Fairway Shops in Kāʻanapali at 2580 Kekaʻa Drive, Suite 117, between China Bowl and Keller Williams Realty.

Island Grocery Depot in Lahaina reopened Tuesday with modified business hours. The store will not have ice, fresh meat and select produce items until water is safe.

The University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization launched a publicly available, interactive housing data dashboard on Sept. 26, that allows users to customize their data reports based on location, with information such as property and rental market, demographics, zoning and housing stock. UHERO designed the dashboard to inform discussions on the way forward for housing in Hawaiʻi.

The grants, made possible through the Micro-Grants for Food Security Program, will provide support for small-scale gardening, herding, and livestock operations to increase the quantity and quality of locally-grown food in communities experiencing food insecurity.

Breezy trade winds will continue through the rest of the work week as high pressure remains far to the northeast of the islands. Trades will gradually weaken as...

Surf along south facing shores will continue to slowly decline as the current small south swell eases. Background swells are expected through the weekend. Small...

Polynesian Voyaging Society CEO Nainoa Thompson said, “The level of hurt thatʻs happening in our home is something I canʻt comprehend. All I know is that we have to come home because of it.”

Officials received reports of a possible 7-foot shark near Brennecke's Beach on Wednesday.

At approximately 4:50 a.m. Wednesday, KPD and Kaua‘i Fire Department personnel were dispatched to a report of a traffic crash involving a motor vehicle and pedestrian near mile marker 2.5 on Kapule Highway in Līhu‘e.

The Kulanaokuaiki Tephra is part of the Uēkahuna Ash, and it has been best studied on the south flank of Kīlauea.

The team successfully removed a total of 63 tons of marine debris over the course of this 4-week effort. This expedition was the Marine Debris Project’s second large-scale effort of 2023, with a previous expedition completed during the month of July. The total amount of debris collected by the Marine Debris Project in the last 90 days now stands at 106 tons.

These achievements are highlighted as part of Workforce Development Month in September, which was celebrated nationally, and which the governor proclaimed as such for the first time in Hawaiʻi.

He was last seen on Sept. 9 in the Kurtistown area wearing a black colored shirt, and white shorts with an American flag design.

Responding to the stabbing reported just before 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, South Kohala patrol officers contacted a 36-year-old male victim who reported that he had been drinking with Haskins at ‘Anaeho‘omalu Bay when he left his black backpack by the entrance to the public showers and headed closer to the shoreline. When the victim went back to check on his backpack, he discovered that food and clothing, valued at $200, had been removed without his permission.