‘Pretty much destroyed’: Devastation at Port Allen leaves Kauai livelihoods in limbo

News admin September 16, 2026 0 Comments

‘Pretty much destroyed’: Devastation at Port Allen leaves Kauai livelihoods in limbo

ʻELEʻELE, Kauaʻi (HawaiiNewsNow) – When Hurricane Lowell swept up from the south, its outer bands slammed Kauaʻi’s southwest coast, delivering a severe storm surge that battered Port Allen Harbor and jeopardized the livelihoods of around 100 people tied to its waters.

The damage across the harbor facility is extensive. Powerful surge dismantled portions of the historic breakwall built in the 1930s, tossing massive boulders into the ocean, ripping apart access roads, and tearing away the facility’s steel entrance gate. Boaters report at least five vessels sank during the storm, with two disappearing entirely beneath the water.

At the Port Allen Boat Club, Stanford Valdez spent days shoveling two feet of ocean sand out of the parking lot. However, fixing the harbor’s infrastructure will likely require state and federal agencies.

Commercial fisherman Kekoa Seward managed to pull his vessel onto dry dock before the brunt of the storm hit, keeping the boat intact, but he now has no working harbor to return to.

“We dry-docked when we saw the storm take a turn, we tried to get ahead of it and luckily my boat is unscathed where it sits, but our harbor is pretty much destroyed,” Seward said.

Seward said he is already preparing for the reality that his boat could remain grounded on stands for the next two to three years while repairs drag on.

“Worst case is I’m prepared for this boat to sit on those stands for the next two to three years,” Seward said. “There’s just this underlying stress that’s there all the time, you know, and we feel it from others. We’re trying to help other people that are in worse shape than ourselves. But yeah, I mean, I can sleep eight hours and wake up tired.”

As mariners confront job losses and economic strain, local organizations are mobilizing to address the mental health and emotional toll on the community.

“The tourist industry is just devastated. The jobs that are going to suffer from that, that are going to suffer from that, the small businesses and all that. That’s a lot of people who are going to be out of work,” said Aaron Hoff, founder of the nonprofit Keala Foundation.

Hoff experienced both Hurricane ʻIniki and the COVID-19 pandemic firsthand. He is preparing for an influx of residents who need help staying healthy.

“I’ve been through Iniki and I’ve been through COVID, and I know from experience that these environments are crucial because it’s what are we going to lean on? Drinking, using it to numb the pain?” Hoff said.

The County of Kauaʻi recently contracted the Keala Foundation to convert an old Big Save grocery store in Līhuʻe into a youth gymnasium and community recreation center. Hoff aims to open the facility next month to offer keiki and families a stable outlet to heal from disaster trauma.

“We get the kids here, and they have environment where there’s solid people that know how to, like, deal with trauma,” Hoff said. “The people and the foundation have survived a lot of trauma and come out the other end and know how to like carry somebody that’s going through that through it.”

The Keala Foundation provides free youth guidance, mentoring, and fitness activities. Community members looking to contribute or access recovery resources can visit kealafoundation.com.