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Maui resident Christopher Steven Helmer, 37, was sentenced today to a 10-year prison term for kidnapping, terroristic threatening, and related firearms and drug offenses, with the term ordered to run consecutively to a prison sentence he is already serving for a separate armed carjacking.

The critical updates will help families throughout the state, including Hawaiʻi County, who experienced food loss because of impacts from Hurricane/Tropical Storm Lala.

Hawaiʻi leaders joined to provide an update on Category 4 Hurricane Lowell and preparations for possible impacts to Hawaiʻi, particularly Kauaʻi and Ni‘ihau.

Following a successful return last year that drew more than 100 entries, the Maui Fiber Arts Show will return Oct. 1-4, 2026, bringing together fiber artists from across Maui County for four days celebrating creativity, craftsmanship, tradition and community.

The Maui Chamber of Commerce is reminding community members that nominations are open for the 2026 Mayor’s Small Business Awards, with nominations due Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. Nominations are being accepted for businesses, nonprofits, or individuals who are making a difference in Maui County.

(Update: 5 p.m., Friday, Sept. 4, 2026) Hurricane Lowell regained category 5 strength Friday afternoon. Watches could be required for portions of the westernmost Hawaiian Islands on Saturday.

Maui County’s housing market saw increased sales activity in August, with closed sales rising for both single-family homes and condominiums compared to the same month last year, while median sales prices declined, according to the REALTORS Association of Maui. In August, 64 homes sold for a median price of $1.2 million, while 68 condo unit sold for a median of $564,950.

Community, connection and local resources come together this Saturday, Sept, 5, at A Hoʻolawa Kine A Day, a free kamaʻāina community gathering from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Wailele Farm at Twin Falls.

Hale Makua Health Services invites the public to attend a meeting regarding its proposed workforce housing project at Maui Lani. The meeting will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026 at Maui Economic Opportunity’s Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Family Center in Wailuku.

Hawaiʻi drivers are paying near-record prices at gas pumps heading into the Labor Day weekend, with little relief in sight, according to AAA Hawaiʻi’s Weekend Gas Watch. On Maui, Kahului hit $5.44 (up a full dollar from the same time last year).

Maui Humane Society is issuing a plea to the community to help find a loving home for Bianca, a 4-year-old German Pinscher/Doberman mix who has officially reached her one-year anniversary at the shelter.

Mug shots and arrest details are still available to the public, but often only upon request or by checking records.

The Maui County Council’s Water and Infrastructure Committee voted 7-0 Monday to recommend passage of Bill 97 (2026), which would authorize the county Department of Water Supply to enter into an agreement with the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to develop three new groundwater wells in Waiʻōhuli and a transmission system to serve homestead housing for Native Hawaiians. The bill now moves to the full Council for further consideration.

Maui County Council members voted 7-1 in committee Thursday to put safeguards how local law enforcement uses automatic license plate reader technology, but they deferred action on a second bill addressing facial recognition technology that is not yet deployed by the Maui Police Department.

The National Hurricane Center is issuing advisories on Hurricane Karina, located well east of the Hawaiian Islands, on Hurricane Lowell, located several hundred miles south of the Hawaiian Islands, and on Hurricane Marie, located several hundred miles west-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula.

The Maui County Special Fair Day will return to Wailuku on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, for a private event dedicated to Maui Nui community members with intellectual and developmental disabilities, according to an announcement by Mayor Richard Bissen. Volunteers are being sought for the celebration from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at War Memorial Special Events Complex.

Hurricane Lowell will approach the western end of the main Hawaiian Islands late Sunday, bringing possible surf, rain, wind and flooding impacts particularly to the western portion of the state. The extent of impacts will be determined by the eventual track of Lowell, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.

The Hawaiʻi Department of Health is reporting that a wastewater sample from Hawaiʻi County has tested positive for dengue virus. The sample was collected Aug. 24, 2026, at the Hilo wastewater treatment plant and DOH was notified of the result Aug. 31, 2026. A follow-up sample was collected on Aug. 31; those results are pending. DOH is not currently tracking any active dengue cases in Hawaiʻi County.

United States Attorney Ken Sorenson announced that Justin Nelson, 43, of Kīhei, Maui, appeared Thursday, Sept. 3, before US Magistrate Judge Wes Reber Porter and entered a plea of guilty to bank robbery. Sentencing is set for Dec. 18, 2026 before Senior US District Judge Helen Gillmor.

Mayor Richard Bissen is urging the US Postal Service to preserve and restore direct home mail delivery for Lahaina residents rebuilding homes destroyed in the 2023 Maui Wildfires, emphasizing that “returning families should not lose an essential service simply because they were forced to rebuild.”