Latest Fire Recovery News

This year’s series of wildfires on Maui, Hawai‘i Island, and O‘ahu raised awareness about this threat to a new level. It is reflected in the proposed budget Governor Josh Green, M.D., submitted to the state Legislature on Monday. 

Bills 121 and 125 will be considered on second and final reading to support the new Office of Recovery and authorize the mayor to enter intergovernmental agreements for public-assistance grants from the state Emergency Management Agency.

Children at Lahaina Intermediate School were surprised with custom hooded sweatshirts on Monday. The donor wished to stay anonymous, but was grateful for the opportunity to provide the kids with this special gift, according to members of the Lahaina Intermediate PTSA.

Council member Gabe Johnson from Lānaʻi will participate in the Dec. 21 conference to discuss underground powerlines, tax tiers for landowners with fallow land, the use of R1 water and housing concerns.

In response to the August fires on Maui, UVSC announced additional efforts to help cancer patients that are dealing with trauma and loss caused by the devastation of the fires and financial challenges from their cancer diagnosis.

Governor Josh Green, M.D. will submit the Supplemental Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 to the Legislature today, prioritizing housing, healthcare, education, and recovery and resilience. 

A team of nine-year old soccer girls raised funds for fellow soccer players affected by the Maui wildfires by designing and selling stickers.

Even though the federal deadline to apply for wildfire damage or losses has passed, Hawaiʻi residents and businesses have been granted a 45-day grace period, until Thursday, Jan. 25, to submit SBA loan applications for physical property damage caused by the wildfires. The last day for small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives and most private nonprofit organizations to apply for an SBA economic injury disaster loan is Friday, May 10, 2024.

The session, planned for 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 21, will be held at The Westin Maui Resort and Spa, Kāʻanapali Honokahua and Honokeana Room, 2365 Kāʻanapali Parkway on Maui. Registration for the event, which will also be broadcast via Zoom, must be completed by Dec. 20.

Maui Bicycling League partnered with the Hawaiʻi Bicycling League, Sovereignty Bike Company from Kauaʻi, and Young Brothers to fulfill the wishes of over 80 kids who requested bikes for Christmas.

Catholic Charities Hawai‘i, Kahului Target Store, Child and Family Services, and various first responders brought holiday cheer to children who were impacted by the recent Lahaina wildfires at its first-ever “Target’s Heroes and Helpers” event held Saturday on Maui.

Santa Claus—in the guise of longtime Maui businessman Richard Dan—gave away hundreds of ʻukulele on Saturday to children at Lahaina schools who lost their homes in the August wildfires.

Hawai‘i Community Foundation announced the award of $575,000 to three nonprofit partners focused on providing assistance to Maui families with small children who have been affected by the fires in August: Partners in Development Foundation, Child and Family Service, and the Hoʻoikaika Partnership with fiscal sponsor Maui Family Support Services.

The department amended the Unsafe Water Advisory for Lahaina to remove area L-4B, which impacts 69 lots near Kapunakea Street on the mauka side of Honoapi’ilani Highway. Water serving the homes in L-4B is declared safe for unrestricted use effective today, Dec. 15, 2023.

The Lahaina Disaster Recovery Center will close at 4 p.m. Dec. 18, Dec. 19 and Dec. 20, because of community meetings.

There will be an alternating, single lane closure on Keawe Street/Lahaina Bypass (Route 3000), from Sunday, Dec. 17, through Friday, Jan. 5, 2024, as contractors replace drain lines across the highway that were damaged in the Lahaina wildfires.  

“I do want to be blunt here, if we don’t get people stepping up, I’m going to drop the hammer on short-term rentals that aren’t able to be used by our people. It’s just not okay that we don’t have housing for our local people. And so, I will propose a moratorium on short-term rentals through emergency rules. I’m sure we will face litigation, but I will do it if we don’t get 3,000 units for our people who have been living in hotels—because it’s not civilized to make people wait to get housing after they’ve lost their home in a fire,” said Gov. Green.

Speaker Scott K. Saiki today announced that the Final Report of the House of Representatives Lahaina Wildfire Interim Working Groups has been published. The report is a culmination of efforts from six bipartisan working groups, formed on Sept. 6, 2023, to evaluate topics related to the Lahaina wildfire.

State Senator Angus McKelvey will host a Town Hall for West Maui residents on Tuesday, Dec. 19 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Lahaina Civic Center.

UHERO forecast: “There remain a host of uncertainties surrounding Maui’s future recovery path, including how fast residents can be moved from hotels to more permanent housing, the speed of ongoing cleanup work, the extent and duration of support programs, and how long and in what fashion rebuilding will occur.”