Maui Wildfire Update – October 11 as of 12 p.m.
Here are the latest Maui wildfire news, updates, and resources you need to know.
West Maui’s reopening to tourism is off to a quiet start.
- Two months after the deadly Lahaina wildfire, West Maui reopened to tourism with 30 trans-Pacific flights arriving in Kahului on Sunday, despite calls on Gov. Josh Green to delay the October 8 reopening.
- Hoteliers expect to see insignificant numbers for reopening. Keith Vieira, principal of KV & Associates, Hospitality Consulting, said, “We understand that everybody has their own feelings about reopening. It’s a sensitive topic, but being closed has hurt the economy, and people who want to return to work should have that right.”
- County and state officials have created video messages and flyers urging visitors to show respect.
- Maui Mayor Bissen said, “We are trying to strike a balance between the need for people to have jobs and the need for people to grieve and to mourn.”
- A petition by community group Lāhainā Strong to delay the reopening had over 16,000 signatures as of October 6.
Maui County is facing a $31.2 million budget shortfall due to the wildfires.
- Most of the revenue lost was in property taxes, estimated at $19.5 million.
- According to budget documents, the county administration is seeking the County Council’s approval to amend the current budget by cutting expenses across the board.
- Leaders in the state legislature plan to take different paths in response to the wildfires. Hawai‘i House members are divided into working in groups aimed at proposed legislation, while Senators will pose individual ideas at a caucus meeting next month.
Housing continues to be a top concern for displaced residents.
- While landlords cannot raise rents under the current emergency proclamation, some Maui residents report that new listings show rents nearly double what they were before the fires.
- As of October 9, Gov. Green reported that 6,874 people are currently being housed in hotel rooms, but the goal is to transition everyone to longer-term housing. He urged anyone who may be displaced to call the American Red Cross.
- Maui County launched a $4 million pilot program to provide participants $375 per month per displaced person they house.
Federal officials say the Lahaina cleanup could be the most complex to date.
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) anticipates completing its phase of the cleanup in Lahaina by November. Given the island’s significant cultural sites, its rich history and possibly the remains of people who died in the disaster, it’s one of the most complex efforts for the agency to date.
- The EPA emphasized the importance of incorporating cultural practices and perspectives in the process and the strength they’ve found in some traditions.
- In other news related to the cleanup, Maui County has approved using the soil stabilizer Soiltac to protect residents’ health and the environment from risks posed by ash and debris that remain on properties burned in the wildfire. While there is widespread agreement that something must be done, there are pros and cons to the product.
In news about how to help Maui continue to recover…
- Merriman’s Kapalua delivers over a thousand meals daily to displaced residents, and visitors are volunteering to help.
- The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement needs help from volunteers to sort through donations at its Maui Relief Storage Facility.
- Four University of Hawaiʻi-led projects received approximately $800,000 in grants to help prevent and react to future wildfires in Hawaiʻi.
Mahalo nui loa,
Your BG Team