Maui wildfire News

Hawaii State And County Officials Seeking $1B From Legislature for Maui Recovery

Hawaii state and county officials have requested about $1 billion from the Legislature to help cover Maui wildfire recovery expenses in the near term. Gov. Josh Green’s administration had budgeted $199 million for such expenses but are now expecting they …

Heart of Hawaii’s Historic Lahaina, Scene of Deadly Wildfire, Reopens to Residents After 4 Months

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — The heart of Lahaina, the historic town on the Hawaiian island of Maui that burned in a deadly wildfire that killed at least 100 people, is reopening to residents and business owners holding day passes. The …

Cleanup from Maui Fires Complicated by Island’s Logistical Challenges, Cultural Significance

Cleanup of areas destroyed in the Maui wildfires could end up being one of the most complex to date, federal officials said, given the island`s significant cultural sites, its rich history including a royal residence and possibly remains of people …

How Did the Maui Fire Spread so Quickly? Overgrown Gully, Stubborn Embers May Be Key

Melted remains of an old car tire. Heavily burned trees. A charred stump of an abandoned utility pole. Investigators are examining these and other pieces of evidence as they seek to solve the mystery of last month’s deadly Maui wildfire: …

Hawaii Officials Say DNA Tests Drop Maui Fire Death Count to 97

WAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — Authorities in Hawaii have adjusted the number of deaths from the deadly Maui wildfire down to at least 97 people. Officials previously said they believed at least 115 people had died in the fire, but further …

US Sets Record for Billion-Dollar Weather Disasters in a Year, with 4 Months to Go

The deadly firestorm in Hawaii and Hurricane Idalia`s watery storm surge helped push the United States to a record for the number of weather disasters that cost $1 billion or more. And there`s still four months to go on what`s …

Lawyers Claim Cable TV and Phone Companies Liable in Fires

HONOLULU (AP) — After a visit to a warehouse where Hawaiian Electric Company is housing power poles and electrical equipment that may be key to the investigation of last month`s devastating fires on Maui, lawyers for Lahaina residents and business …

Hawaii Electric Takes Responsibility for First Fire on Maui, But Faults Firefighters

Hawaii’s electric utility acknowledged its power lines started a wildfire on Maui but faulted county firefighters for declaring the blaze contained and leaving the scene, only to have a second wildfire break out nearby and become the deadliest in the …

Bare Electrical Wire and Leaning Poles on Maui Were Possible Cause of Deadly Fires

In the first moments of the Maui fires, when high winds brought down power poles, slapping electrified wires to the dry grass below, there was a reason the flames erupted all at once in long, neat rows — those wires …

Shareholders Sue Hawaiian Electric Over Maui Wildfires

Shareholders of Hawaiian Electric HE.N on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the utility provider in a San Francisco federal court, alleging the company’s failure to disclose important information about its wildfire prevention and safety protocols. Hawaiian’s protocols and procedures were …