Maui Food Bank coordinates airlift of 2,000 pounds of food to Hāna

The Maui Food Bank is coordinating with the Maui Emergency Management Agency and Maui United Way to load helicopter flights to deliver 2,000 pounds of shelf-stable food to Hāna residents cut off by the recent “March Kona Low” storm system.

Two planned flights will each carry about 1,000 pounds of supplies to East Maui. While the community needs list includes fresh produce and frozen proteins, the food bank is sticking to shelf-stable items for the airlifts to ensure food safety.

As of Monday evening, March 16, access to the Hāna Highway between Hāna Town and Twin Falls was open, but limited to essential workers and local traffic only.

When road access to the isolated community is restored, officials said the Maui Food Bank’s Mobile Market truck will follow up with deliveries of fresh produce and frozen meat, possibly later this week.

Hawaiian Electric reports that about 240 customers in East Maui, may experience extended outages for several more days as crews work around the clock to repair about 20 damaged poles and multiple spans of downed lines. Most of Hāna town is also back online with power.

The Maui Food Bank has been embedded in daily operational briefings with the Maui Emergency Management Agency since March 11. The MEMA team initially put the food bank on standby for shelters in Lahaina, Kīhei and Kahului, though retail stores in those areas remained accessible early in the storm.

As conditions worsened over the weekend, the food bank shifted to direct support:

• Emergency Snack Bags: Staff distributed 221 snack bags between March 14 and March 15.
• Shelter Support: Deliveries reached the MEMA basement and shelters at Maui High School and the South Maui Community Park Gym.
• Meal Service: The Salvation Army continues to provide hot meal service at active shelters.

The Maui Food Bank is working alongside Maui United Way, Maui Rapid Response and Hāna community leaders to prevent duplication of services. Other partners include Living Pono and the Pacific Birth Collective. 

The food bank remains open and is operating normally at its other facilities across Maui County