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The Maui County Council voted 8-0 this morning to approve a reduced $12 million emergency appropriation to fund ongoing repair efforts and rising overtime costs from what is now being called March Kona Low Storm No. 1.

The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Warning for the island of Molokaʻi until 2:30 a.m. At 11:34 p.m., A line of heavy showers with embedded thunderstorms moving in from the west is producing rainfall rates of 1 to 3 inches per hour.

Gov. Josh Green today announced the closure of all state departments and release of employees not considered disaster response and preparedness workers on O‘ahu, Friday March 20, 2026, effective immediately, due to severe weather conditions that are impacting the island.

Evacuation advisories have been issued at 9:28 a.m. today, March 20, 2026, for Wahikuli and Leialiʻi areas below Ka Laʻi Ola in Lahaina due to nearby retention basins nearing capacity, according to Maui Emergency Management Agency (MEMA). County of Maui contracted crews are actively working to redirect overflow and actively pumping water from the Lahaina basin to help keep levels safe. Warnings and advisories are NOT mandatory evacuation orders.

Ho‘okele Home Care announced that it has received three prestigious national honors from independent home care industry association Activated Insights: the Best of Home Care® Provider of Choice, Employer of Choice, and Leader in Training awards.

Op-Ed: “As we continue recovery, we must also prepare for a second kona storm approaching this weekend. In many areas – debris, saturated soils, and compromised infrastructure remain ongoing concerns,” said Tom Cook, Council Member, South Maui residency area.

Water service has been restored up to Kamaʻole Road in Upper Kula. With water service restored, residents are advised to flush their water lines. If you have a separate storage tank, it is also recommended that you drain and flush the tank.

With severe storm conditions affecting parts of the state, the Commission on Water Resource Management (Commission) has received reports of unauthorized stream channel alterations occurring on various islands. Such unpermitted work can threaten public safety by worsening flooding and diverting flood waters onto neighboring properties.

“These bills reflect our committee’s priorities: making streets safer, improving enforcement and traffic safety and ensuring the well-being of our residents,” said House Transportation Committee Chairperson Rep. Darius Kila of Oʻahu in a state House release about the measures.

More than 80 youth advocates gathered at the state capitol for an annual youth rally to “Take Down Tobacco” on Wednesday. Students from Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Maui, Molokaʻi, and Hawaiʻi Island, along with community advocates, urged lawmakers to take action to end the youth vaping epidemic. 

The summit region of Kīlauea experienced tephra fallout and a Kona low storm this past week. Cleanup, recovery, and regrowth is ongoing. These processes are natural and have been recognized and embodied in Native Hawaiian oral traditions about Pele, Lono, and Hiʻiaka.

Playful interaction put the focus on ‘ohana’ at the March 13 Maui Tech ‘Ohana, presented by Maui Economic Development Board. The evening’s guest speaker, Doug Nelson, used structured games and playful activities to help participants connect and share in ways that feel natural, energizing, and meaningful.

At the request of fire officials earlier this morning, Hawaiian Electric turned off power to about 1,300 customers in the Waialua area due to flooding. Additional areas were de-energized shortly before 9 a.m., resulting in an outage for a total of 4,100 customers on the North Shore.

The state of Hawaiʻi Office of Consumer Protection is alerting consumers who have reservations with ACE Rent A Car Maui to make alternative arrangements, as OCP has confirmed with company personnel at Ace Customer Care that the company has ceased doing business on Maui and has no intention of honoring existing bookings. Travelers who pre-booked rental vehicles through this company can expect to find no shuttle service available and no personnel to assist them upon their arrival at Kahului Airport (OGG).

South Kīhei has been identified by MEMA as an area at high-risk of flooding due to significant sediment accumulation from the recent kona low storm. Ongoing cleanup efforts are focused on restoring drainage capacity, but elevated flood risk remains. Other areas of moderate-risk include ʻĪao, East Molokaʻi, Lahaina, and East Maui.

While Maui County braces for more severe weather, council members are poised to take action Friday morning on a $15 million request for emergency funding, following a Wednesday committee update on the effort to rebuild from the August 2023 Lahaina wildfire disaster.

DHS obtained approval from the federal Food and Nutrition Service to extend the deadline to submit applications for replacement benefits until April 2, 2026, for specific areas of the state impacted by prolonged power outages associated with the kona low weather event from March 13-March 15, 2026.

PDF conversion software called DocAccess has been launched on County of Maui-managed websites to provide several new accessibility and translation features.

The new kona storm forecast to reach the state beginning today follows a severe kona storm that impacted the state March 13 to 16, 2026. Maui received the highest rainfall totals in the state from the first kona storm, and wind speeds were second highest in the state, according to NWS data. Flooding and wind severely damaged portions of South Maui, ‘Īao, Upper Kula, East Maui and Lahaina.

The County of Maui Department of Liquor Control will begin accepting license renewal applications on April 1, 2026. Applications may be submitted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday at the department’s office, 110 Ala’ihi St., Room 212, Kahului.