Maui is still navigating its long road to recovery one year after the deadly and destructive wildfires of Aug. 8.
The emergency response in the days and weeks following the fires in Lahaina and Upcountry has since shifted into rebuilding what was lost.
The Army Corps of Engineers has moved hundreds of thousands of tons of debris to a disposal site in Olowalu. With most lots cleared, reconstruction is emerging. And government-funded temporary group housing projects are starting to take shape.
There’s a long way still to go, but the progress has become more evident. Here’s what it’s looked like from the air over the past year.
Lahaina
The Aug. 8 fires dealt a deadly and destructive blow to the historic West Maui town of Lahaina. At least 102 people died, 2,200 structures were damaged, 12,000 people were displaced and the economic engine on Front Street came to a stop. The Army Corps of Engineers has since removed the vast majority of debris, unsafe water advisories have been lifted and residents have slowly begun rebuilding their homes and businesses.
The county, state and federal government are building two temporary group housing sites next to each other mauka of the Wahikuli neighborhood in north Lahaina. The state-led project, called Ka Laʻi Ola, will include about 450 modular units capable of housing up to 1,500 wildfire survivors for five years. The Federal Emergency Management Agency-led project, called Kilohana, will include 169 units on 34 acres and is expected to be completed by October.
The Army Corps of Engineers anticipated moving 400,000 tons of fire debris from Lahaina to a temporary disposal site about seven miles south in Olowalu — and it’s well on its way to doing just that. Almost all of the 1,399 residential properties had been cleaned up as of July 31, and nearly half of the 159 commercial properties have been cleared. But the county’s plan to use eminent domain to secure a Central Maui property to serve as the final disposal site has run into legal delays, leaving it unclear when the Olowalu dump, located next to a world-class coral reef, will no longer be needed.
Upcountry
Fires on Aug. 8 destroyed 19 homes in Kula and burned 1,283 acres total Upcountry. The community helped overstretched county firefighters battle the blaze and has continued to work together to aid in the recovery.
