USA Wildfires Response

Due to the number of fatalities and vast destruction, the Lahaina Wildfire in Maui, Hawaii is now deemed the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century. So far, 115 people have died while close to 1,000 are still reported missing. For nearly 1,500 homes and buildings, the damage was near 100%, with entire families among the fatalities.

One of the biggest challenges facing survivors now is housing. Approximately 3,000 individuals are living in 11 hotels, and this number is expected to rise to about 5,000. Over the next six to eight months, the goal of the housing task force in Hawaii will be to transition these survivors to permanent housing. 

Peace Winds dispatched staff to Maui on August 16, and members of our team remain there supporting both short-term and mid-to-long-term recovery. Partnered with the Hawaii Red Cross, our focus is to provide immediate material resources along with mental health/trauma support services. At the Red Cross Family Assistance Center in Lahaina, Peace Winds staff will continue to work alongside local volunteers supporting marginalized households to move kokua (aid/assistance) quickly to support recovery.

Peace Winds’ experience teaches us that recovery from these fires will take a long time and tremendous local effort. Displaced people may not be able to return to their homes given the near complete destruction.

Hawaii faces many of the same chronic issues we know have impacted most communities across the United States – lack of affordable housing, homelessness, high costs of living, and the systemic inequities that can often come from being priced out of the paradise that is an island state. As a tourist destination, after the wildfires, jobs have been lost, and businesses will continue to lose revenue.

Click the links below to watch a video update from the field and to read this and other updates on the Peace Winds blog. Thank you for your donations in support of our relief efforts in Maui, and please visit Peace Winds' website and social media to see regular updates from the field. We appreciate your continued support.

Links:

• Watch the video on YouTube
• Read this and other blog posts on our website

On August 16, three Peace Winds staff members, including a nurse, arrived in Maui to provide support following the wildfires. The death toll has now reached 111, and the search for victims continues. Rescue teams are hard at work while Peace Winds has partnered with the local Red Cross chapter to provide food, water, and emergency supplies to survivors living in temporary shelters.

Peace Winds photographer Simon Kondo is on the ground in Lahaina documenting the damage. He tells Peace Winds that although there is no sign of active fires, first responders are still carrying out firefighting activities to ensure that hotspots do not produce flames. As long as the hot, dry conditions continue, teams will continue to water affected areas as a precaution.

The city of Lahaina has suffered extensive damage down to the coastline, Kondo says, and the area is still filled with the pungent odor of burnt plastic. The city is quiet with only a few locals here and there, looking stunned at the damage. In contrast to earthquakes, it seems like there is nothing to clean up–most debris from homes and belongings has simply burned up.

Peace Winds staff members are working with our local partners to assess the needs of survivors and provide support. We will bring updates as we are able. Please visit our project on GlobalGiving to make a donation toward Peace Winds’ activities in Maui. We thank you for your continued support.

Links:

• Read this and other blog posts on our website