������Ƶ

Hawaii’s shelter program for people who lost their housing in the Aug. 8 wildfires has formally ended, although more than 50 families remain unhoused.

Managed by the state and the American Red Cross and funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the shelter program helped 7,796 individuals and 3,071 households, according to a news release Thursday by Gov. Josh Green and the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

“The successful transition from emergency response to recovery and intermediate housing marks a significant milestone in our collective efforts to support those impacted by the wildfires,” Green said.

The state’s rental assistance program, FEMA’s and other housing initiatives by the and have found housing for many people and families who have been living in hotel rooms since the deadly wildfires that killed at least 102 people in Lahaina and destroyed much of the town.

“The road to recovery is long, but we remain embedded in the Maui community, to continue finding community-led solutions and building resilience in the long term,” said Brad Kieserman, vice president for disaster operations and logistics with the .

FEMA’s regional administrator Robert Fenton said the agency’s strong partnerships with the state, the community and the Red Cross have helped Lahaina’s fire survivors find stable housing solutions.

On his X account, formerly Twitter, Green said all 7,796 wildfire survivors have found “more stable intermediate housing” at this point.

“I extend my heartfelt mahalo to all the hotels and condo operators for their immediate support following the fires. Their generosity and swift action provided shelter and comfort to countless families during a time of immense need,” he said.

Kiele Amudson, spokeswoman for Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, noted that FEMA has a separate housing program and that it continues to have about 56 households currently in hotel rooms.

Of those, 12 are awaiting a direct lease unit and 44 are waiting to get placed in FEMA’s group housing site which is still under construction.

Rebekah Uccellini, program director with , said many people who were directly or indirectly affected by the wildfire are still struggling to find housing.

“People are slipping through the cracks,” Uccellini said.

Uccellini said she’s working to find housing for a kupuna with dementia and stage 4 cancer, as well as a family with three children who were evicted from a hotel because of water damage she said was caused by a leaky air conditioning unit but was blamed on the kids.

Many people have moved to the mainland because they’ve given up on trying to find housing in West Maui and those individuals and families aren’t counted in the official numbers of those served by FEMA, the state or the Red Cross, according to Uccellini.

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by grants from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.