Investigators reviewing the emergency response to last year’s devastating wildfire on Maui said in a report released Friday they found “no evidence” that Hawaii officials made preparations for it, despite days of warnings that critical fire weather was about to arrive. That lack of planning hindered efforts to evacuate the historic town of Lahaina before it burned in a conflagration that claimed 102 lives, the report said. Recommendations include Maui police, firefighters, the state land department, and Maui emergency managers work on their procedures for joint incident management, per the AP. “These procedures are very common in other jurisdictions in the United States,” the report said.

A weather forecaster with the National Weather Service emailed fire managers an “unprecedented advance warning” on Aug. 4, 2023, of the danger that would develop on Aug. 8, including extreme winds as a hurricane passed far to the south, according to the report released by the state attorney general. The email stressed the unusual certainty of forecast models and “significant concern” on the part of forecasters. But in the ensuing four days, the report found, there is no evidence that key agencies—including the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, Maui Fire Department, and Maui Police—developed plans for dealing with severe wildfire risk, such as by having extra staff on duty, stationing emergency vehicles or supplies in high-risk areas, or plotting possible evacuations.

The heroic efforts of firefighters and police—who frequently risked their lives, sometimes sprinting door-to-door to warn residents to leave or piling evacuees into their cars to drive them to safety—were undercut by a lack of planning as the deadliest US wildfire in a century destroyed thousands of buildings and caused billions in damages. Neither Maui County nor the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency immediately responded to emails seeking comment. “This investigation serves as a wake-up call for the state and county governments to learn from the past and urgently prepare for the future,” Attorney General Anne Lopez said in a statement accompanying the report.

(More Hawaii wildfires stories.)

At the midway point of the Hawaii women’s volleyball nonconference schedule, the Rainbow Wahine are building a resume that could pay off in a big way come November.

Hawaii’s 4-1 start has been a roller coaster within every match as the Rainbow Wahine have yet to play a three-set match and have gone to five sets three times.

The fortunate part of that is the seeding criteria used by the committee that selects at-large teams to the NCAA Tournament don’t include sets won and lost within a match.

The primary criteria, according to NCAA.com, is RPI (Ratings Percentage Index), head-to-head competition, results versus common opponents, significant wins and losses and KPI.

Whether Hawaii needs an at-large berth if it can’t win the Big West Conference Tournament, or is looking to improve its seeding as the BWC champion, the schedule put together by the Hawaii coaching staff and Hawaii’s early-season success within it is shaping up to be a big help come tournament time.

“In my mind, it is all about RPI. That’s the name when it comes to us getting into the NCAA Tournament if we don’t win the Big West championship,” associate head coach Kaleo Baxter said after Hawaii’s four-set win over Texas State on Tuesday night.

September can be seen as a little early to be scoreboard watching with so many matches to be played from now until November, but the murmurs inside of SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center watching Hawaii’s first opponent, SMU, have been hard to ignore.

Since losing to Hawaii in five sets, the Mustangs are 5-1. They swept San Diego in their second match of the Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Volleyball Classic and then three days later swept then-No. 2 Nebraska, which Hawaii head coach Robyn Ah Mow said she went home and watched after practice that day.

Prior to UH’s win on Tuesday night, SMU again pulled off another big win, sweeping No. 18 Baylor on the road in Waco, Texas.

Meanwhile, San Diego, which UH defeated opening weekend, beat No. 17 BYU tonight in 5.

All but two of Hawaii’s nine nonconference opponents received multiple votes in the AVCA preseason top 25 rankings, including Texas State, which Hawaii will play again on Saturday to wrap up the Outrigger Invitational, which starts for the Rainbow Wahine tonight against Oregon State.

The Bobcats are spending a full week in Hawaii as part of their season-opening stretch of 13 consecutive matches away from home.

They are the preseason favorite in their conference, as was Pepperdine, which Hawaii split two matches with last week.

The Rainbow Wahine have three matches on the road next week, including a Texas two-step next Friday and Saturday at No. 6 Texas and at Baylor, before starting Big West play.

Take care of business this weekend and the nonconference schedule can play out exactly as the UH coaching staff envisioned, which included scheduling multiple Tuesday matches in lieu of having three teams competing in nonconference tournaments instead of four.

“(Tuesday) was a quick turnaround, but there are numerous teams playing Tuesday night matches that we aren’t used to here at Hawaii, and it also sets us up for next week when we are playing (this) Tuesday at UNLV,” Baxter said. “(It’s) a lot of volleyball, and when these young women are able to get a lot of touches, that’s when we really see their game elevate and grow.”

Texas State (4-3) swept Oregon State (1-5) on Thursday to open the Outrigger Invitational.

The Beavers have two players on their roster from Hawaii. Freshman Emma Lily, who finished second in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Fab 15 last year, is Oregon State’s starting setter and finished with 19 assists and seven digs against the Bobcats.

Alexis Rodriguez is a 5-foot-11 freshman outside hitter from Mililani who hasn’t played yet this season.

Outrigger Invitational

At SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

Tonight

>> Hawaii (4-1) vs. Oregon State, 7 p.m.

Saturday

>> Hawaii vs. Texas State, 7 p.m.

>> TV: Spectrum OC16

>> Radio: 1420-AM / 92.7-FM

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Hawaii’s Tua Tagovailoa has been sidelined with a concussion.

The Miami Dolphins quarterback went down Thursday evening after colliding with Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin.

The Saint Louis graduate lowered his head and hit the right arm of Hamlin during a six yard scramble with less than five minutes left in the third quarter.

Tagovailoa struggled to immediately get up but he was able to walk off the field on his own and back to the locker room.

Tagovailoa has a history of concussions, including one that ended his 2022 season.

This story will be updated when new information becomes available.

Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.