HONOLULU – Gov. Josh Green committed to restoring the devastated town of Lahaina under the guidance of residents in a Friday speech that marked one month since Maui’s deadly wildfires.
He announced several long-term relief efforts to aid survivors and assist with Maui’s economic recovery.
The fires that swept through West Maui on Aug. 8 burned more than 2,000 acres, displacing thousands of residents, killing at least 115 people and leaving 66 still missing.
The number of missing people is down from 385 last week and more than 3,000 initially, said Green from the ceremonial room.
“The Maui Police Department continues to make daily progress … and encourages families to share information about any missing loved ones,” he said.
Green noted over 7,500 displaced survivors have been moved from shelters. and are now staying in 29 different hotels and hundreds of Airbnbs on the island.
He assured residents that displaced survivors will be housed “well into 2025” due to an agreement with the American Red Cross to keep people housed for a minimum of 36 weeks, as well as rental assistance grants from FEMA to provide housing for an additional 18 months.
“We’re also pursuing relationships with large numbers of homeowners who have historically used their properties for short-term rentals to convert them into longer-term rentals to accommodate displaced residents,” Green said.
Lahaina residents will be able to visit their properties under supervised visits within the next few weeks.
“Many displaced survivors have asked when they can return to their homes and properties and businesses to survey the damage. In the coming weeks, we’ll begin to schedule supervised visits for displaced people to return to view their property under safe conditions,” he said.
It will take “the better part of a year” and $1 billion to remove the toxic ash, hazardous materials, and other debris from Lahaina, according to Green.
“Once the EPA has completed its removal of hazardous materials from the affected areas, which is ongoing – this process will take three to four months – we can begin the removal of other debris,” he said.
“To be clear, people will get in soon. But the long-term debris removal is going to take a great deal of time.”
The billion-dollar debris removal effort will be supported by the federal government, said Green, who added that “25 cultural practitioners” will also assist to “ensure that the Hawai‘i traditions we have and respect during this process are in place.”
Green emphasized that rebuilding in the area would only start when residents are ready.
“The people of Maui must have as much time as they need to heal and recover and will begin to rebuild only when they are ready,” Green said.
“We’re committed to rebuilding and restoring it the way they want it. I want to emphasize this again. The land in Lahaina is reserved for its people. As they return and rebuild, I instructed the attorney general to impose enhanced criminal penalties, including up to a year in prison, on anyone who tries to take advantage of survivors by an unsolicited acquiring of property in affected areas on Maui,” he said.
Other long-term recovery efforts include leasing the entire properties of three to five local hotels and building transitional temporary housing.
“But housing alone won’t be enough to get our people through this incredibly difficult time,” said Green, adding that “tens of millions of dollars” raised by organizations, including the American Red Cross, Hawai‘i Community Foundation and Maui United Way, will provide “life-sustaining support to supplement state and federal need.”
Other funds announced include the authorization of $100 million from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a federally funded grant program to help affected families recover.
To support businesses, Green will make $25 million available in the form of $10,000 and $20,000 bridge grants to provide “immediate relief” to help prevent bankruptcies. The grants will be distributed by the Maui Economic Opportunity team.
Green also urged visitors to come to the state and island to support the local economy, and he announced the end of all travel restrictions on West Maui beginning on Oct. 8.
“So people from Hawai‘i and around the world can resume travel to this special place and help them begin to recover economically,” he said.
“This difficult decision is meant to bring hope for recovery to the families and businesses on Maui that have been so deeply affected in every way by the disaster.”
A third-party investigation into the cause of the fires and the emergency response is also underway.
“We’ll get answers to exactly what happened there. And there will be full accountability and transparency to the public,” Green said.
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Emma Grunwald, reporter, can be reached 808-652-0638 or egrunwald@thegardenisland.com.
