Maui Fires of August 2023: Resources & How to Help

ByMalia Yoshioka Updated on

What is the current situation on Maui?

November 2024: The first home to be rebuilt after the Lahaina fires has passed its final building inspections, welcoming the family a week before Thanksgiving 2024, more than a year after the wildfires. But things are still progressing slowly for many families and there are mixed feelings in the community about returning to normal.

For the latest updates, you can check the weekly roundup of news provided by the County of Maui, as well as the links to local media provided below.

Local news media covering the brush fires in Maui

Other news media coverage – outside Hawaii

HVCB 41318 Maui Map revised 11 6

One year later (August 2024)

The county has a resource page at MauiRecovers.org and specifically for the one year remembrance, a site called Kuhinia Maui: A week of rememberance and hope. Events like a memorial paddle out at Hanaka’o’o Beach Park on the 8th and the Lahaina Obon Festival at the Cannery Mall on the 10th, plus others throughout the weekend. View the full list of events.

How can YOU help after the Maui fires?

Direct aid for families affected in Lahaina and Kula

In the days after the fire, a few Maui residents created Help Maui Rise as a spreadsheet that collected the direct aid information for Maui families’ GoFundMe pages.

They’ve also provided support in setting up pages and translation services for many of the immigrant families who faced a language barrier in receiving donations.

You can opt to choose families individually or make a “one click donation” which GoFundMe will disperse equally to all the Lahaina families.

Maui Humane Society seeks flight volunteers with Alaska Airlines

If you are flying with Alaska Airlines, you can sign up for Wings of Aloha: Alaska Angels to help transport a rescue dog or cat to their new homes on the continental US, at no cost to you.

While you are on island you can also help shelter dogs to get exercise and socialization by participating in the MHS Dogs on Demand program.

Help sponsor the replanting of trees in Lahaina and Kula through Treecovery

Local nonprofit Treecovery has a stated mission: “To keep the trees in the fire zones alive and provide trees for no charge to the residents and businesses in Lahaina and Kula that lost their trees in the wildfire.” At special events they also sometimes offer sponsorship of trees that will be raised and planted in Lahaina, like at La Ulu (Breadfruit Day) in September 2024.

Should you visit Maui after the brush fires?

It’s a personal choice, and one that even I struggled with.

Of course, I’d like to see my family and friends and give everyone a huge hug in person. But I am also worried about taking up accommodations and resources that might go to families who have been displaced.

In November 1, 2023, West Maui areas outside of the burn zone were reopened to tourism. However, I personally would recommend you consider basing yourself in other areas of the island – perhaps that you’ve not visited before. South Maui, Upcountry and Central Maui are all great options for you to explore. Even though resorts and restaurants may be open, the staff needed to run them may still be living out of hotels or commuting long distances from other parts of the island.

Also, please note that there has long been a housing crisis in Maui and the thousands of families displaced by the fires have struggled to find dignified, long term solutions. There were ongoing “Fishing for Housing” protests in Kaanapali until early May 2024 when Mayor Bissen proposed a bill to phase out more than 7000 short-term rentals by 2026. You may want to consider booking a hotel rather than a short-term rental in order to do your part to help encourage more of these conversions that are so desperately needed.

As of April 2024, 820 Lahaina families were still living in hotels and had their meals cut to one per day. This is tough because obviously in a hotel room, you can’t cook. So it becomes necessary to have the meals provided for them and their families.

I ultimately did decide to book my ticket and although I don’t regret it, I wasn’t personally able to bring myself to visit the West side as it was just too painful. If you do decide to visit Maui and especially if you visit West Maui, the following are some tips to keep in mind to be a responsible and respectful visitor:

Support local businesses

  • Spend your money with local businesses wherever possible.
  • This is not the time to ask for discounts or to nickle-and-dime your way to the best deals! If you are on a tight budget, consider saving up for your next trip and perhaps making a donation online to support the community instead.
  • Tip generously and pack some extra patience. Remember that those serving you may still be grieving or dealing with displacement. Similarly, avoid asking questions (even out of concern) that may lead to painful memories for survivors.
  • Consider using this spreadsheet of west side businesses and their websites if you’d like to purchase gift cards to support businesses that have reopened.

Volunteer with or donate to local nonprofits

  • Maui Humane Society – volunteers are always needed and donations also accepted and put to good use. If you can’t volunteer, you can also donate to the Maui Humane Society.
  • Chef Hui – distributes food to various hubs around the island. You can make a donation or volunteer your time. Fundraisers have also been created to help support those in the hospitality industry who have lost their restaurants or jobs due to the fires.
  • Maui Food Bank – you can donate online, in person or even host a virtual food drive. Needs lists are updated frequently.
  • Maui Nui Strong – resources for volunteers seeking to donate their time, money or services
  • Maui Strong Fund – created by the Hawaii Community Foundation to manage grants to local organizations for aid relief.

Personal experience and memories of growing up on Maui

I read a powerful story by local journalist Lee Cataluna in the early days after the fire. It’s worth reading in full but here’s an excerpt that really caused me to pause and reflect.

On social media, the practical, critical information is mixed in with lamentations from people who claim Lahaina as their own special place because they had a fun vacation drinking fruity cocktails on Front Street one summer or because they went there on their honeymoon and are taking the devastation very very personally. People all over the world want to express what Lahaina meant to them and how they are reeling from the loss.

Those levels of loss are valid, but superficial. As touristy as Lahaina had become, it was still a place where real people lived. There were generations of families that had deep roots in that red soil, who worked hard and made good lives under that sometimes merciless sun, who fell asleep listening to the waves along Lahaina’s shore. Their loss is unfathomable.

Any news story, any action, any opinion that doesn’t center the real people of Lahaina is tangential, maybe even superfluous. The people of Lahaina are what’s important, not the banyan tree, not buildings, not the shops that sold T-shirts and trinkets. The people. The families.

I was born on Maui and grew up in Wailuku. My memories of happy times spent in Lahaina don’t matter to anybody but myself, particularly at a time like this.

Lee Cataluna in Civil Beat

I completely agree with Lee and my heart goes out to those who are still grieving lost loved ones, pets, homes and belongings after the fires on Maui…

I am purposely including my own reflections last for this reason.

When I think of Maui, I think of the view from Upcountry down the windswept isthmus of Central Maui. In my childhood, when the sugar plantation was still in operation, you could tell the conditions of the winds (normal tradewinds or Kona winds coming from the opposite direction) by the direction of the smoke coming from its smokestack. The cane fields spread out below were often in various stages of growth, the green turning to a dry brown in the days leading up to the burns that preceded a harvest.

After the last sugar plantation closed in 2016, the cane fields are gone and the view has changed in so many ways. In many areas of the island, dry non-native grasses have taken over where the sugar cane once grew. As the island experiences more frequent and more severe drought conditions, the dry grass sits just waiting for a spark to light the next big brushfire. The strong wind blowing through the Valley Isle is the one thing that has remained constant.

Sadly on August 8, 2023 with even-stronger-than-usual winds predicted thanks to an approaching storm, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that multiple brush fires popped up around the island. But we weren’t prepared for the level of devastation that would follow.

I’m currently living halfway around the world and like many, I was glued to the news in the hours and days after the fires began, first seeking reassurance that my family was safe. Slowly the realization of the scope of the tragedy in Lahaina took over as images and videos were being shared round the clock all over the world. I got so many messages from friends and even many of my students.

It’s still hard to believe all that’s happened and all that we’ve lost. I can only hold hope that any processes to rebuild Lahaina are community-led and centered on native voices. My wish is that a more thoughtful and sustainable tourism infrastructure can replace the extractive tourism of the past.

Further reflections – Maui voices

Other great articles that I’ve read include:

Further Resources for specific Maui Regions

The timeline of reopening in Lahaina & West Maui

On Sunday, October 8, 2023, Governor Josh Green has moved ahead with plans for the “tourism restart” and there are still many mixed feelings among local residents. Many feel that the reopening has been rushed and that a mere two months after the deadly fires is simply too soon. The Maui county council voted unanimously to ask the Governor to postpone the opening. However, it’s also true that tourism is vital to the economy and the rest of the island of Maui remains open. Many local businesses have suffered in the aftermath of the fires.

Either way, visitors are starting to make their way back to parts of West Maui and many are getting to know other areas of the island.

The burn area in Lahaina remains hazardous. Out of respect and compassion for the residents of these areas, please avoid passing through or spending time in this area.

While this is still a developing situation and there are many questions that remain unanswered, currently re-entry for West Maui residents is happening in phases and many are still in the process of grieving, mourning the lives lost, and cleaning up after the disastrous brush fires of August 8, 2023. Even those who are working in the hospitality industry may be facing strain on their mental health from constantly answering questions from well-meaning visitors. This is a tight-knit community and everyone knows someone who has been affected.

Social media accounts to follow for news on Lahaina & Maui

Currently in Upcountry Maui (Kula & Olinda)

Much of the coverage centers on West Maui, but in my hometown of Upcountry Maui, 20 homes and structures were also lost. Hot spots and flare ups remain due to the difficult nature of the terrain. Efforts are underway to restore the upper Kula watershed and to plan for long-term stewardship.

Social media accounts to follow for news on Upcountry Maui

Malia Yoshioka is a freelance food and travel writer from Hawaii, slowly eating her way around the world and currently based in Istanbul. Born and raised in beautiful Upcountry Maui, she created Shoyu Sugar to share her hometown favorites with visitors and kama’aina alike. Consider this your insider guide to the best things to do, see and - most importantly - what to EAT in Hawaii and beyond!