Maui News

The US Senate unanimously passed the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, which includes Tokuda and Hirono legislation to lessen the tax burden on survivors of the Maui wildfires. The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.

The University of Hawaiʻi Maui College will host a “Holiday Bash & Electric Light Parade” on Friday, Dec. 13 at 4:30 p.m. on the Kahului campus’s Great Lawn and Pā‘ina Building dining area. The event is open to the public and admission is FREE.

First Hawaiian Bank today announced that bank employees and retirees have ushered in this year’s holiday giving season by contributing a donation of $873,987.53 to 36 charities in Hawai‘i, Guam, and Saipan as part of the bank’s annual Kōkua Mai employee giving campaign.

Azeka Shopping Center will host the 22nd Annual Toys for Tots charity drive this Sunday, Dec. 8 from 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. at Azeka Makai in Kīhei. The community is encouraged to donate new, unwrapped toys to benefit underprivileged youth in Maui County. Plus, don’t miss the fun with appearances by local motorcycle clubs, […]

Maui-based nonprofit Kelea Foundation has announced the grand opening of its new headquarters and community space in Kahului.

There is no tsunami threat to Hawaiʻi based on all available data following a 7.0 (preliminary magnitude 7.3) magnitude earthquake reported at 8:44 a.m. HST (10:44 a.m. PT near the epicenter) on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reports there is a tsunami threat for parts of the Pacific located closer to the earthquake.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees elected Trustee Kaialiʻi Kahele as board chair on Wednesday. Kahele succeeds Trustee Carmen “Hulu” Lindsey of Maui who has served as chair for the past four years. The board and administration recognized and thanked Lindsey for her service as board chair.

Visitors to Maui island lag behind by pre-pandemic arrivals in 2019, according to a fourth quarter 2024 Statistical and Economic Report released by the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

Maui County residents can help with donations of cash and/or new, unwrapped toys for the 2024 Toys for Tots Holiday Toy Drive, an annual US Marine Corps’ event sponsored locally by Minit Stop and Street Bikers United Hawaii.

Local nonprofit Mālama Maui Nui is encouraging volunteers to join a Pūlehu Road Clean Up from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Dec. 7.

Maui residents displaced by the August 2023 wildfires have until Dec. 15 to submit new applications for the Hawaiʻi Interim Housing Program. Households with existing applications have until Jan. 15 to complete them.

Maui youth will enjoy a special shopping day at Queen Ka‘ahumanu Center this Thursday, Dec. 5, at 4 p.m. as the culmination of Ledcor Maui’s Makana no nā Keiki gift drive. The second annual “Gifts for Children” drive raised $105,000 for Maui youth, and was made possible by the generous giving of Ledcor and community partners, in partnership with nonprofit ʻĀina Momona. 

Today, the full House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Lahaina National Heritage Area Study Act – introduced by US Rep. Jill Tokuda (HI-02) – marking another significant step forward in her efforts to support the community in recognizing Lahaina’s historic and cultural importance. 

After months of preparation, Habitat for Humanity Maui is embarking on the next step to help Maui wildfire survivors rebuild their homes and lives. The devastating wildfire that swept through Lahaina and Kula on Aug. 8, 2023, destroyed over 2,200 homes, leaving thousands of families displaced and in need of urgent support. The nonprofit organization has partnered with multiple community agencies to help survivors return to their homes, and is now calling on individuals, businesses, and organizations to join in this critical mission, providing the resources needed to restore stability for those affected.

A pilot release of five ʻalalā recently occurred on the leeward slopes of Haleakalā, in the Kīpahulu Forest Reserve on Maui. This cooperative effort is a historic first release of Hawaiʻi’s endemic crow on Maui and the first reintroduction attempt outside of Hawaiʻi Island.

Keālia Pond National Wildlife Refuge, in partnership with ReTree Hawaiʻi, will host a ‘green fire break’ demonstration from 8:30 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024 at the Keālia Pond National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center parking lot.

Five University of Hawaiʻi Maui College dental hygiene students each received a $3,000 HDS Foundation scholarship. They are: Supattramanee Payackapan of Kahului, Maui; Gabrielle Galano of Kahului, Maui; Amara Pederson of Kihei, Maui; Marie-Nicole Medrano of Wailuku, Maui; and Sabrina Carmen Pargad of Kahului, Maui.

Koast, a new restaurant coming to Wailea Village this winter, brings the star power of celebrity chef Chris Cosentino, a Top Chef Masters winner and James Beard Award nominee, to Maui’s culinary scene.

Boatswain’s Mate 2nd Class Genesis Versola, from Kahului, Maui is pictured above braiding a rat tail stopper aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Preble (DDG 88) in the Philippine Sea, Nov. 29. Preble is forward-deployed and assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest DESRON and the US 7th Fleet’s principal surface force.

A magnitude-3.5 earthquake occurred beneath the Kaiwi channel, between Oʻahu and Molokaʻi at 1:53 p.m. HST on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. The Hawaiian Volcanoes Observatory issued an information statement saying the quake was centered 14 miles west-northwest of the village of Maunaloa on the Island of Molokaʻi at a depth of 5 miles below sea level. The earthquake had no apparent impact on either Maunaloa or Kīlauea volcanoes on the Island of Hawaiʻi.