Maui marks 3 years since deadly wildfires with community healing, recovery milestones

News admin August 9, 2026 0 Comments

Maui marks 3 years since deadly wildfires with community healing, recovery milestones

LAHAINA (HawaiiNewsNow) – Survivors, organizers, and county officials gathered on Maui Saturday to reflect, heal, and evaluate recovery progress three years after the devastating August 2023 wildfires.

The disaster killed 102 people, displaced nearly 13,000 residents, and caused more than $5.5 billion in damage.

Gathering for healing and remembrance

The anniversary began early for organizers of Kuhinia Maui at the Lahaina United Methodist Church — a gathering that has become an annual island tradition. The event provided community members with free activities, including lei making, lomi lomi, and acupuncture.

“Everyone is recovering at their own pace and grieving at their own pace,” Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen said. “But what’s important is that we provide an outlet so people are not alone.”

For survivors like Laurie Lei Degama, who lost her home, business, and uncle in the Lahaina fire, the gathering is a source of critical comfort.

“All we need is a hug. We don’t even need words,” Degama said. “We just need to feel loved and not forgotten.”

Now, three years after the disaster, she said her perspective is shifting as physical reconstruction begins to take shape.

“I’m at a different space right now at the three-year mark,” Degama said. “In the beginning, it was a lot of boots on the ground, just keeping busy, trying to survive and stay in housing. Second year was still a lot of the same, but still hopeful. As we’ve gone on to the third year and things are like — you can see the progress of recovering. Some apartments are being built, more houses are being built. There’s a little bit of more hope and the forward movement of Lahaina town.”

Rebuilding moves from plans to pavement

That visible progress is highlighted in the county’s official metrics. While the community focuses on emotional healing, physical reconstruction is also moving forward with Bissen releasing a three-year recovery milestone report detailing the county’s progress.

Approximately 600 homes have been rebuilt throughout Lahaina, with another 400 under construction and more moving through the permitting process, he said.

“There’s lots of tangible progress that can be seen for anyone who’s been to Lahaina,” Bissen said. “Because we’ve never experienced this before, there’s really no way of saying how long things are. … We’re committed to getting everybody back into their homes and our businesses built back up.”

On the commercial side, Bissen reported that five permits are ready, several others are in final stages, and at least a dozen more are in the permitting pipeline. Restaurants like Kimo’s, Fleetwood’s, and a local fish market are currently in various permitting stages.

Rebuilding Front Street presents unique regulatory challenges, as it contains state, federal, and cultural historic districts, Bissen said. He said the county has used emergency proclamations to adjust building rules and establish clear design guidelines.

Infrastructure progress also includes sidewalk repairs, seawall projects, the repaving of Front Street, and the December reopening of Lahaina Harbor.

The upcoming ‘Ulu O Lele Marketplace, a commercial site with 17 pop-ups and eight food trucks, is set to support commercial revitalization in September.

Watch our full Sunrise interview here:

Reflecting on lessons learned

Bissen acknowledged criticism over the speed of recovery, but noted that comparison with other disaster-affected communities shows Maui is pacing well.

“We continue to feel the loss of our loved ones,” he said. “We remember the past, we reflect on the past, but we also look at ways we can improve moving forward. So the lessons that we’ve learned is something that we want to incorporate as we continue to recover and rebuild.”