This winter, vacationers in Maui were seen purchasing paddle boat trips on one side of the beach, while “Lahaina Strong” flags stood in front of local residential tents on the other. These makeshift shelters serve as a way of protest for dignified housing. Thousands of residents lost their homes and businesses to the deadly wildfires.
The suit, one of at least 30 lodged against Hawaiian Electric over the disaster, was filed Wednesday in Maui Circuit Court by Ke‘eaumoku Kapu and U‘ilani Kapu, a Lahaina couple who ran the Na ‘Aikane o Maui Cultural Center on Front Street before it burned down.
Most of Lahaina’s surviving historical and cultural artifacts remain buried under ash and debris a month and a half after a horrific wildfire ravaged the center of the historic town.
Maui County hasn’t built any new fire stations on Maui or significantly increased its staffing of firefighters on the island in 20 years. During that time, however, the population has grown substantially and firefighting has become more challenging, especially in leeward West Maui.