Hawaii
Growing number of Maui residents are ‘barely surviving,’ new report finds
Survivors share their devastating stories of survival from Maui, HI
Maui evacuees shared their devastating stories of survival after the nation’s deadliest wildfire in a century.
Claire Hardwick, USA TODAY
Nearly half of Maui residents say their financial situation has worsened since the Lahaina fire and 1 in 5 are “seriously considering” leaving the state, according to a new report that paints a troubling picture of the challenges facing fire survivors – and the county as a whole.
More than two-thirds of fire survivors have struggled to afford groceries in the last year, and half have cut back on medical care for financial reasons.
“We don’t use the word ‘poverty’ very often to talk about the situations in Maui County and we should,” said Lisa Grove, lead researcher of the Maui Together Wildfire Assessment.
More than 2,000 county residents and 1,000 fire survivors participated in the assessment, which is being published by the Hawaii State Rural Health Association and drew on both written surveys and in-person and online focus groups.
The vast majority of respondents – whether they lived in West Maui or Lanai or Molokai – said they were more worried than hopeful about their future in Hawaii.
Perhaps most troubling, it’s the people with the deepest roots in Hawaii who expressed the most uncertainty about their future here, Grove said.
“It’s our Native Hawaiian community. It’s our kupuna. It’s the long-time residents,” Grove said during a presentation Thursday on the survey. “And that is tragic.”
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Fire Impacts Wide, But Unequal
The percentage of residents across the county who said they had been directly and indirectly impacted by the fires – 72% – was startling, said Grove, a Lanai resident who has been conducting polls and surveys in Hawaii since 1990.
“Those who have been directly impacted by the fires have experienced greater financial, mental and physical hardship than the rest of the county, though circumstances on all three islands have worsened over the past two years,” the assessment points out.
The mood of people surveyed across the county was grim. “Stress,” “uncertain” and “stressful” were among the most common words respondents countywide selected to describe their life. For fire survivors, “concerned,” “struggling” and “frustrated” were some of the most-used descriptors.
Fire survivors reported higher rates of being unemployed or under-employed than the rest of the county. They also tend to be younger, more likely to have children living with them and were less likely to have a college degree.
Just over half of fire survivors surveyed were living in West Maui, and those who had been able to stay on that side of the island appeared to be faring better than those housed in other places.
Housing instability was, unsurprisingly, a top issue for people displaced by the fire. Roughly 50% of fire survivors said they had moved at least three times since last August, and 11% had moved six or more times.
Mental health is also a significant issue, Grove said, and is something that needs to be prioritized in recovery efforts.
An Exodus Coming?
Though there is no definitive data on how many people have left Maui since the fire, the exodus of residents is a significant concern for many in the county.
A majority of people – 81% of fire survivors and 65% of county residents – have had friends move away from Maui since the fire, while 30% of fire survivors had family members leave.
Nearly half – 45% – of fire survivors said they were “very seriously” or “somewhat seriously” thinking about leaving themselves.
While people of all socioeconomic backgrounds said they were contemplating leaving the state, fire survivors who moved in the last year are more likely to be white, older and in a higher income bracket. People who had only been in the state a short time were also more likely to have departed after the fire.
Grove said that in past statewide surveys she’s conducted, there are generally three things people say keep them in Hawaii: ohana, a sense of aloha and the multi-ethnic and diverse nature of the state.
There’s going to be a tipping point, Grove believes, where those wonderful things are outweighed by the struggles of trying to live here.
“I feel like we can only go so far with those intangibles when you’re talking about people saying that they’re barely surviving,” she said.
This story was published in partnership with Honolulu Civil Beat, a nonprofit newsroom doing investigative and watchdog journalism relating to the state of Hawaii.
Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by a grant from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation. Civil Beat’s community health coverage is supported by the Cooke Foundation, Atherton Family Foundation and Papa Ola Lokahi.
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – It’s shaping up to be a slower-than-usual summer for Hawaii’s tourism industry, but business leaders hope events that market the islands’ unique local food and products can turn that around.
The state expects total visitor arrivals to grow only about 2 percent this year. Numbers slid half a percent in April from the previous year, with the largest market, West Coast tourists, falling nearly 5 percent. The statewide hotel occupancy rate averaged 76.4 percent.
Economists blame higher airfares, rising inflation, fewer international visitors and uncertainty following the March kona low storms.
State-supported events like the Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association’s (HLTA) Hawaii Hotel and Restaurant Show and DBEDT’s Hawaii Made Conference aim to boost tourism by promoting products you can only find in Hawaii.
“We’re going to continue to struggle, but we can’t stop promoting. We can’t stop advocating,” said HLTA President/CEO Mufi Hannemann. “If you can travel during these times, you’re going to come and have a wonderful experience in Hawaii whether you’re just coming for sun and surf or you’re coming here to immerse in our culture or to do business, this is the place to come.”
And those who do come are spending more.
At the Hotel and Restaurant Show this week, local food manufacturers hoped to secure more buyers in the hospitality industry.
Many rely on business and leisure visitors trying their products while in Hawaii and taking them back home where they promote it.
“The traceability that you want to know where your food is coming from,” said June Rees, general manager of Kauai Shrimp, which has 40 ponds off the coast of Kekaha. You’ll find their shrimp on many menus across the islands.
“There are a lot of people that heard about us but never tried, so this show gives us exposure to the new restaurant or chef that have heard about the name but never really tried the product.”
But fewer tourists mean less sales and slower business growth and investment.
Jina Wye is the founder of Okonokai, which makes snacks from native seaweed grown off the Kona coast on Hawaii Island.
“It’s like a superfood that everyone should be eating everyday,” she said. “There’s a lot of just missing infrastructure for manufacturing, but that’s something that we’re working on. It’s actually why I’m part of this whole like DBEDT pavilion because the state is really working hard to develop more infrastructure.”
For the family behind Aloha Star Coffee Farm, getting their award-winning premium kona coffee into airports, hotels and restaurants is key.
“Getting the opportunity to find the market niche that we need,” said Karina Rodriguez, co-owner of Aloha Star Coffee. “We are small, that sometimes we don’t have all the resources for marketing and, and going to the biggest stores, and we are working on that.”
Food entrepreneurs will get another chance to promote their products at DBEDT’s Hawaii Made Conference this Tuesday at the Sheraton Waikiki. Click here to register and for more information.
The 16th Hawaii Food & Wine Festival is another event that promotes local chefs and restaurants while promoting tourism. It spans three weekends from Oct. 16 to Nov. 8 across three islands. Find information here.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A piece of equipment designed to provide temporary water access across Oahu is now being targeted by thieves, prompting concerns from officials over rising losses and illegal water use.
The Board of Water Supply rents out temporary meters for construction sites, public events and emergency use when potable water is needed in areas without direct service.
But officials say some of the devices are being stolen despite heavy security measures.
At installation sites, the meters are wrapped in thick steel chains and secured with multiple heavy-duty padlocks to deter tampering and theft.
“For somebody to try and take it, because you saw the chain, it’s the big links. They’re thick links, so you’d have to come with a grinder or an extremely heavy-duty bolt cutter. So it’s not impossible to remove it, but it requires quite a bit of effort to remove it,” said Kathleen Pahinui, public information officer for the Board of Water Supply.
According to the agency, about 22 temporary fire hydrant meters have been illegally removed over the past two and a half years. Eight of those thefts occurred in just the past three months.
Officials say the motive behind the thefts is not confirmed, but potential drivers include scrap value or misuse of the meters to divert water for unauthorized use.
“And we don’t want people basically stealing water because then we all end up paying for that theft,” Pahinui said.
Each temporary meter costs about $3,000 to replace, and the Board of Water Supply says responsibility for protecting the device falls on the permit holder once it is installed.
“The person who has the contract with us has to replace it,” Pahinui said.
State Sen. Brenton Awa said one stolen meter on the North Shore had been serving the Haleiwa Seed Bank, where volunteers are planting coconut and ulu trees for the community.
“We set this up with the Board of Water so that we’re within the rules, we’re paying for the water, for the project, for the community. And then it just wasn’t here one day,” Awa said.
“It’s a piece of metal on the side of the road. Who’s going to steal this thing? But apparently… it’s worth something,” Awa added.
Under Hawaii law, scrap yards are prohibited from purchasing municipal, utility or state owned equipment without proper documentation.
Recyclers say materials commonly found in the meters, including brass and bronze, typically sell for about $2 to $3 per pound depending on grade. While the scrap value is relatively low, companies say functioning used meters can resell for hundreds of dollars.
The Board of Water Supply is urging the public to report any suspicious activity involving temporary meters by calling (808) 748-5000.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
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