Hawaiʻi AG releases third and ‘Final Forward-Looking Report’ on Lahaina wildfire

Hawaiʻi Attorney General Anne Lopez has released the final, forward-looking report for the Department of the Attorney General’s investigation into official government response to the Lahaina wildfire in August 2023. The disaster claimed the lives of at least 102 people, destroyed more than 2,000 structures and left thousands homeless.

The report organizes the findings from the Lahaina Fire Comprehensive Timeline Report (Phase One) and Lahaina Fire Incident Analysis Report (Phase Two) and prioritizes a list of action items for the state and all counties to prepare for and respond to future wildfires.

The report includes recommendations and provides guidance for each county fire department to complete a community risk assessment, community risk reduction plan and standards of cover analysis. It also includes a review of the fire codes and standards adoption, as well as  use processes for Maui County.

The report’s release comes on the eve of the opening of the Hawaiʻi Legislature’s annual lawmaking session on Wednesday.

“The Phase Three report contains detailed recommendations and plans that state and county leaders can begin implementing today. Several of these recommendations will require collaboration between federal, state and county agencies,” Lopez said. “The tragic fires in Los Angeles County highlight the need for action, where climate change continues to make major fire disasters more frequent. Responsible governance requires we now work together to make the necessary improvements to prevent future disasters of this magnitude from happening again.”

The key priorities identified include:

Action Planning and Accountability: This recommendation calls for requiring several state/county departments and agencies to work together to prepare a preliminary action plan to address Phase Two Findings and Recommendations pertaining to their areas of responsibility.

Office of the State Fire Marshal: This calls for recruiting and hiring a state fire marshal (or interim leader) and personnel to fill critical roles within the Office of the State Fire Marshal.

Wildfire Education Programming: This recommendation would provide statewide educational programming on wildfire preparedness. It calls for developing and implementing a plan for ongoing financial support for programming.

Communication Systems: This recommendation would assess the resiliency and functionality of communication systems and the All-Hazard Outdoor Warning Siren System, and establish redundant public alerting and warning processes, including best practice messaging guidance.

Utilities Risk Reduction and Planning: This calls for work with utilities to identify immediate improvements to vegetation management programs to protect infrastructure from wildfire and enhance resiliency, and to provide guidelines for supporting incident management and operations.

Fire Weather: This recommendation would improve fire weather forecasting and historical record keeping by ensuring remote automatic weather stations are positioned in high wildfire danger areas statewide. Also it would engage stakeholders who are installing weather stations that may provide additional fire weather information.

Evacuation: Requires several state/county departments and agencies to coordinate and prepare a standardized format for documenting and executing evacuation plans for high wildfire risk areas.

Codes and Standards: This recommendation requires several agencies to collaboratively evaluate and enhance the review and adoption processes for codes and standards, ensuring they effectively address wildfire risks, particularly in the wildland-urban interface and ensure a unified approach to wildfire resilience.

Wildfire Response Preparedness: This requires several state/county departments and agencies to improve the coordination of wildfire preparedness and response of emergency responders across all agencies and private contractors to ensure the effective and efficient use of shared resources and to provide expectations for incident management organization.

Vegetation and Land Management: This would Identify the state agency responsible for vegetation management of non-conservation areas and establish a framework for landowners to follow for responsible land management.

County priorities and recommendations

Action Planning and Accountability: This recommendation would assign county-based organizations and agencies to prep a preliminary action plan to address Phase Two Findings and Recommendations pertaining to their areas of responsibility and assign representatives to coordinate research and work plans with state and federal partners.

Risk Assessment and Data-Driven Investment: This calls for each county fire department to complete a Community Risk Assessment and Community Risk Reduction plan according to National Fire Protection Association 1300 standards, as well as complete a Standards of Cover analysis to identify investment in fire resources to address wildfire risk and other hazards in each county.

Wildfire Response Preparedness: This recommendation requires county first responder and emergency management agencies across the state to improve coordination of wildfire preparedness and response of emergency responders to ensure effective and efficient use of shared resources.

Incident Management: This requires county emergency management and first responder agencies to develop and implement a statewide incident management training, qualification, and response framework consistent with the National Incident Management System and in alignment with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 5.

Wildfire and Wildland Urban Interface Education Programming: This recommendation would provide educational programming and risk reduction support for the diversity of audiences across each county regarding wildfire preparedness.

Communications Systems and Planning: This priority extends to preparing plans for how different forms of public emergency communications will be executed and ensuring interoperability of emergency responder communications.

Utilities Risk Reduction and Planning: This calls for county fire departments and public utilities to identify immediate improvements to vegetation management programs to harden and protect infrastructure from wildfire, prevent utility-ignited fires and enhance overall resiliency. They should also develop guidelines to support incident management, operations, and responder safety.

Vegetation and Land Management: This would identify a county agency to work with the state agency responsible for vegetation management of non-conservation areas and establish a framework for landowners to follow for responsible land management.

The Fire Safety Institute was selected by the state as an independent, third-party to assess the performance of state and county agencies in preparing for and responding to the Maui wildfires. The institute prepared all three reports released by the attorney general.

Using a systems analysis methodology, the institute evaluated how the complex intersections between environmental conditions, human activity, established policies and procedures, and accepted norms and perceptions contributed to the August 2023 fire event in Lahaina. Through this process, the institute identified 84 findings that resulted in 140 recommendations for the state and counties to follow to begin addressing these issues promptly.

“As mentioned in the Phase Two report, there was no single factor directly responsible for the tragic outcome. The conditions that led to these fires were in the making for decades,” said Steve Kerber, Ph.D., vice president and executive director of the institute. “The state, counties and the community now have the blueprint for the critical first steps necessary to establish a solid foundation for improving fire safety across Hawaiʻi.”

In developing the Phase Three report, each county fire chief received the county priorities and recommendations and personal briefings and provided valuable input that was incorporated into the report.

Now, the state contract with the institute includes a Community Risk Assessment, Community Risk Reduction plan and a Standards of Cover Resource analysis for the Maui County Department of Fire and Public Safety.

“FSRI looks forward to continue working with the Maui Fire Department to update and implement these critical plans,” said Derek Alkonis, institute Research Program manager. “We encourage each county fire department to complete the same analyses to address the critical wildfire risks that exist throughout the state.”

The full Lahaina Fire Forward-Looking (Phase Three) Report can be found on the Department of the Attorney General’s Maui Wildfire Investigation page here.