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What We Lost in the Lahaina Fire

The fire razed Maui’s densest dining town, destroying the fifth-generation-owned Nagasako Okazuya Deli, Maui’s oldest dive bar, the pickle mango stand on Front Street, and so much more

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Throughout its centuries-long history, Lahaina has been many things to many people: a royal residence, a missionary post, a hard-partying harbor town, a tourist trap. For some, it was simply home.

The fire that reduced the historic town to ash on August 8, 2023 was unsparing. It took the lives and livelihoods of so many of our community members. Around 50 restaurants went up in smoke that day. As the former dining editor for Maui Nō Ka ‘Oi magazine, I can name 30 without even trying. It’s an unfathomable loss for the industry — one that feels particularly cruel after everyone worked so hard to survive the pandemic.

For many, it’s still too early to talk about rebuilding. Even apart from the grief and mourning that still hangs in the air, on a very practical and tangible level, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates it will take months just to clear away the literal toxic debris. Before the fire, Lahaina’s world-famous Front Street was little more than a patchwork of wooden shacks held together by layers of paint, cooking grease, crusty sea salt, banana sap, and gossip. Some restaurants will certainly reopen in new locations, but that unique patina that made the place so compelling is gone.

And some restaurants will never reopen, including Nagasako Okazuya Deli , the oldest and arguably most beloved eatery in Lahaina. For 120-plus years, the Nagasako family served the West Maui community, and it started with Mitsuzo Nagasako, who opened a candy store on the corner of Front Street and Lahainaluna Road in the early 1900s. With each successive generation the business evolved — into a supermarket, then a grocery, and finally an okazuya, or deli. Lahainaluna boarding students crowded the okazuya counter before school each day to stock up on the deli’s special Spam musubi: meat in the middle, fried in teriyaki sauce. Families stopped by before and after the beach for shoyu chicken and breaded teriyaki steak. A week after the fire, the Nagasakos announced through a heartfelt post featuring photos of all six generations of the family that they would not reopen. This is one of the many threads to Lahaina’s past that has now been lost.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nagasako Okazuya Deli (@nagasako.okazuya)

The Pioneer Inn was Lahaina’s first hotel, built in 1901. Over the years it housed a saloon, stage, and movie theater. Most recently it was home to Papa‘aina , chef Lee Anne Wong’s wharf-side restaurant. Originally from New York, Wong came to Maui by way of Honolulu. She learned to cook Hawai‘i-style cuisine at Koko Head Café, her brunch spot in Honolulu’s Kaimukī, and perfected it at Papa‘aina, where she served breakfast ramen and mapo tofu loco mocos. A few years ago, Wong hosted a dumpling workshop in the Inn’s courtyard, drawing lessons from her cookbook, Dumplings All Day Wong . With her son on her hip, she taught us to roll and pinch our dough into crescents and dip them into boiling broth, much as local cooks had for the past 100-plus years. Whether or not Papa‘aina will ever reopen is unknown — right now, Wong is focusing on relief efforts for the thousands of displaced people.

Not long ago, at Kimo’s Maui , I had lunch with Paris-born artist Guy Buffet, who had immortalized the Front Street restaurant in a painting that captures the euphoria of dining there on the waterfront. When Rob Thibaut and Sandy Saxten opened Kimo’s in 1977, it was the beginning of their T S Restaurants empire, which now includes Dukes Waikīkī, Hula Grill, and Leilani’s on the Beach, among others. A trip to Maui was hardly complete without tackling a mammoth slice of Hula Pie at sunset while surfers caught the last ankle biters of the day at Breakwall. The owners have already pledged to rebuild their landmark restaurant.

Two doors down from Kimo’s, passersby could peek through a porthole into the Lahaina Yacht Club . Lahaina’s second-oldest restaurant was invite-only — but more in the piratical than prissy sense. Before transpacific sailor Floyd Christenson opened the beloved Mama’s Fish House in Kū‘au, he and a few other old salts founded the mariner’s club in 1965. They transformed a Front Street laundry into a clubhouse and contracted Hawaiian artist Sam Ka‘ai to design the club’s pennant, or burgee: a white whale on red backing. Colorful burgees from yacht clubs worldwide hung over the open-air dining room, where commodores traded navigational tips and tossed back shots of Old Lahaina Rum. If you rang the ship’s bell, you were buying the whole restaurant a round.

Across Honoapi‘ilani Highway, the Sly Mongoose boasted no view whatsoever — instead, Maui’s oldest dive bar advertised air-conditioning. Since 1977, “the Goose” had lured patrons indoors with its jukebox, goldfish crackers, and happy hour featuring $2 Jager Spice and “free beer tomorrow.”

These are only a fraction of the restaurants lost; entire chapters could be written about Lahaina Grill, Pacific’o, Feast at Lele, and Fleetwood’s on Front Street, where the Mad Bagpiper serenaded the setting sun on the rooftop every night. Restaurants weren’t the only places to find sustenance in Lahaina, either. There were food trucks, farmer’s markets, and even temples that served specialty snacks. During Chinese New Year, the Wo Hing museum offered crispy gau gee samples and moon cakes imported from Hong Kong. During the summer Obon festival, Lahaina Hongwanji and Jodo Mission hosted nighttime dances with chow fun booths. The outdoor kitchen at Jodo Mission overlooked the ‘Au‘au Channel and the steam from the boiling noodles wafted out to sea along with lanterns to remember the dead.

Lahaina old-timers will remember the little mango stand across from 505 Front Street. For years a local woman sold pickled mango there in little plastic sacks. Kids biked over after baseball games for bags of mango and sodas. In the summer, Lahaina’s mango trees were laden with the orbs of fruit. And before there were mangos, there were ‘ulu, or breadfruit, groves. Lahaina’s ancient name, Malu ‘Ulu O Lele, refers to the ‘ulu trees that once grew so thick you could walk for miles beneath their shade. Perhaps those trees will grow again.

As enormous as this disaster was, the community’s response was even greater. The day after the fire, Maui’s chefs sprang into action. The team of the grassroots project Chef Hui mobilized at the UHMC Culinary Arts campus to do what they do best: feed and nourish their community. In the first six days, they served over 50,000 hot meals to survivors of the fire. Despite losing her Maui restaurant, Wong has been at the campus every day plating up bentos, along with Isaac Bancaco, who lost both his home and his workplace at Pacific’o. Jojo Vasquez lost his home, too, and was forced to temporarily close Fond , his restaurant in Nāpili. That didn’t stop him from messaging his Chef Hui colleagues: “Tag me in coach, I stay ready.” Joey Macadangdang turned his restaurant, Joey’s Kitchen in Nāpili, into an emergency shelter the night of the fire and has been cooking for his displaced neighbors every day since.

Hawai‘i’s restaurant owners and workers are a tight-knit crew, battle-tested and resilient. Long before this fire stretched them thin, Maui’s restaurateurs, chefs, and servers were always at the island’s innumerable charity events with knives and generators ready. I had often wondered how they kept their doors open while donating food and staff to all these causes. Now is our chance to repay them for their decades of nourishment and for helping to knit together Lahaina’s fabric — layers of history laid down by Native Hawaiians, whalers, missionaries, plantation laborers, locals, transplants, and tourists to create the Lahaina in which we lived, loved, and dined.

Shannon Wianecki is a Hawai‘i-based writer and editor who specializes in natural history, culture, and travel.

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Much Of Historic Lahaina Town Believed Destroyed By Overwhelming Fire

There have been 6 fatalities confirmed so far, according to Mayor Richard Bissen.

LAHAINA – Eyewitnesses described an apocalyptic scene Tuesday in Lahaina town, where residents were forced to jump into the harbor waters to avoid fast-moving flames from a massive brush fire that’s destroyed much of the historic area — and continues to burn.

Residents say an overwhelmed fire force — fighting flames all day amid powerful winds — could do little as flames ripped through the historic community, destroying dozens of homes and businesses in what onlookers believe is the worst natural disaster in Hawaii’s history since Hurricane Iniki.

Acting Gov. Sylvia Luke confirmed that the Hawaii National Guard had been activated to help respond to the sprawling fire crisis, which also includes other raging wildfires. The flames have forced thousands to their homes, and many aren’t sure what they’ll find when they return.

Officials confirmed to Hawaii News Now that the Coast Guard deployed a helicopter and boat to Front Street Beach and the Lahaina Small Boat Harbor to rescue a number of people from the water.

About 10:50 p.m., the Coast Guard said it had rescued a dozen people from waters off Lahaina.

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The full scope of the devastation in Lahaina isn’t known, but videos on social media show a terrifying wall of flames descending on Front Street in Lahaina and destroying everything in its path. One heartstopping video posted by fleeing residents shows uncontrolled flames in all directions.

The video also shows burned out cars, but there was no immediate word on injuries.

Lahaina resident Tiare Lawrence compared the scene to something out of the apocalypse, with people running for their lives.

“It’s just so hard. I’m currently Upcountry and just knowing I can’t get a hold of any of my family members. I still don’t know where my little brother is. I don’t know where my stepdad is,” she said.

“Everyone I know in Lahaina, their homes have burned down.”

Front Street business owner Alan Dickar says he watched business after business in the historic district going up in flames.

“Buildings on both sides were engulfed. There were no fire trucks at that point; I think the fire department was overwhelmed,” Dickar said. “That is the most important business street on Maui.”

A Maui County spokesperson confirmed there were “multiple” structure fires in addition to “extensive evacuations” in the Lahaina area, but authorities said they were unlikely to ascertain the full extent until well into Wednesday — when winds are expected to die down.

The county also said it wasn’t immediately clear just how many people jumped into the water off Lahaina to avoid smoke and flames, though they indicated rescue operations were ongoing.

“The Coast Guard has been responding to impacted areas where residents are entering the ocean due to smoke and fire conditions,” the county said, in a news release about 10 p.m. Tuesday.

“Individuals were transported by the Coast Guard to safe areas.”

The brush fire in Lahaina is one of at least seven sizable wildfires that firefighters are battling statewide amid treacherous conditions — powerful winds, low humidity and dry brush.

The winds — fueled by Hurricane Dora as it passes south of the state — have topped 55 mph in many spots, with gusts to 70 to 80 mph. In addition to wildfires, first responders are grappling with downed trees and damaged structures. Also on Maui,  thousands remain without power .

And while the Lahaina fire appears by fire to have wrought the most devastation, widespread damage is also being reported in Kihei and Kula, where evacuation orders also remain in place.

Another concern for first responders is the thick smoke blanketing parts of Maui.

Earlier in the day, officials confirmed that a firefighter in West Maui suffered smoke inhalation and was taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center in stable condition.

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Mapping the Damage From the Maui Wildfires

By Molly Cook Escobar ,  Lauren Leatherby ,  Scott Reinhard ,  Elena Shao and Charlie Smart Updated Aug. 12, 2023

Structures visibly

damaged or destroyed

in satellite imagery

Honoapiilani Highway

Source: Times analysis of satellite image by Planet Labs; building footprints from Maui County and OpenStreetMap

An analysis by The New York Times using satellite images identified about 1,900 structures that appear visibly damaged or destroyed by wildfires in Lahaina, a historic tourist town on the island of Maui in Hawaii.

Wind-fueled wildfires that tore through the island on Tuesday and Wednesday have claimed at least 89 lives , forced the evacuation of thousands and decimated Lahaina.

While the fires were largely contained by Thursday morning, firefighters have continued to battle flare-ups, and emergency workers are still searching for survivors amid smoky and ashy conditions.

Approximate

area of fires

Approximate area

of fires Wednesday

Source: Satellite data from Landsat

Satellite imagery of parts of Lahaina showed that the fires destroyed streets and leveled hundreds of structures, a number of them heritage sites that housed treasured artifacts of the town’s legacy and history.

Sept. 15, 2022

Planet Labs

Aug. 9, 2023

Tourists flock to Hawaii in large part for its tropical landscape and lush forests, but the state has also become increasingly vulnerable to wildfires . The area burned annually by wildfires in Hawaii has quadrupled in recent decades.

Invasive grasses that are highly flammable have taken over native vegetation in some areas, and climate change has exacerbated dry and hot conditions that have allowed many wildfires to spread more quickly.

Worsening drought conditions in recent weeks most likely contributed to the latest blaze. Nearly 16 percent of Maui County was in a severe drought on Tuesday, an uptick from about 5 percent the week before, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor . Lahaina, where the damage from fires was most concentrated, is on the drier, leeward side of the island that tends to receive less rain.

The drought had been worst in Maui,

where the largest wildfires occurred.

Dry conditions in Hawaii

Abnormally dry

Moderate drought

Severe drought

(THE Big Island)

The drought had been worst

in Maui, where the largest

wildfires occurred.

Source: U.S. Drought Monitor

Note: Data as of Aug. 8, 2023.

Lāhainā boat captain navigates loss and recovery after fire depletes family business

Lāhainā residents are taking stock of what’s been lost, as firefighters continue to assess the damage caused by the wildfires in west Maui.

Lāhainā boat captain Keao Shaw lives just two minutes south of Lāhainā Harbor. He didn’t think much about leaving his home Tuesday to help neighbors clear fallen trees.

"By the time I came back, I couldnʻt even get back to the house. My family and kids were with me and we had just the shirts on our back. And the houses are gone. Everything is leveled. Some of the boats that we had are at the bottom of the harbor now," Shaw said.

Shaw and his wife, ‘Iwa, run a small charter boat business out of Lāhainā called Makai Adventures and a tour company Kainani Sails.

They lost one of their two boats in the fire, but it’s their 10 employees and their well-being that is top of mind for the Shaws.

"They’re also my really good friends. And some of them are with child. It’s really hard to see what they’re going through," Shaw said.

"A lot of people lost their homes, a lot of people lost their jobs. And it’s like how do you even stay? I would love to keep them here," he added.

The Shaws have raised more than $21,000 so far online for their employees .

Meanwhile, the couple’s children, 5-year-old Nāhiku and 3-year-old ʻOlina, were forced to relocate to ʻIwa’s hometown on Oʻahu’s North Shore because both of their schools were lost in the fire.

"One of my biggest questions is four years ago we had a similar hurricane scare and it was the same scenario. The fire started up in the mountains and they were raging toward Lāhainā and all of Lāhainā had to be evacuated. I’m curious as to what started the fire and how we could have prevented it," Shaw said.

It is still unclear exactly what triggered the wildfires in Lāhainā. For now, Shaw will remain in nearby Honokohau Valley, while his wife and children start school on Oʻahu.

For additional coverage on the Maui wildfires, see below:

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Hawaii News

Lahaina’s historic and cultural treasures go up in smoke.

• By Timothy Hurley [email protected]
• Aug. 10, 2023

VIDEO BY RICHARD OLSTEIN VIA AP

Aerial video from a helicopter shows the vast destruction of Lahaina, a historic town on Maui leveled by wildfires. Authorities said at least six people died in the blaze.

COURTESY PHOTO BY ALAN BARRIOS

Front Street Apartments burning in Lahaina.

This was not the first time Lahaina was destroyed by fire. In the early morning of New Year’s Day 1919, fire swept through the town, destroying more than 30 buildings, according to historical accounts. Read more

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The fire that rampaged through Lahaina on Tuesday delivered a devastating blow to Hawaii’s historical and cultural resources.

The area in and around Front Street — designated a National Historic Landmark since 1962 — was leveled by the massive overnight blaze, and so were its historic buildings, landmarks and sites.

A spokesperson for Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen wasn’t ready late Wednesday afternoon to list the landmarks that were destroyed by the fire, saying access to the area was still restricted and crews were still actively fighting the fire.

But Tamara Paltin, who represents Lahaina on the Maui County Council, didn’t hold back while delivering food and supplies to West Maui via boat.

“Basically everything from Safeway to the Chart House is gone,” she said in a brief phone interview.

Some of the lost historical sites, she said, include:

>> Waiola Church, established in 1823 by High Chiefess Keopuolani.

>> Maria Lanakila Catholic Church, which was established in 1846 by the Rev. Aubert Bouillon of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and officially dedicated in 1858.

>> Lahaina Jodo Mission, which was established in a private house in 1912 to propagate Buddhism in Lahaina. The temple moved to its present location in 1931.

>> Na Aikana Cultural Center, which occupies a building that once served as a soup kitchen for plantation workers during an ILWU strike against the Pioneer Mill.

>> Pioneer Inn, built in 1901 by George Alan Freeland.

Other structures that appear to be lost include:

>> The Old Lahaina Courthouse, which opened in 1860 as a customs house for whaling and trade ships as well as a center for government offices and court functions during the monarchy period.

>> The Baldwin Home Museum, the oldest home on the island, built between 1834 and 1835 for missionaries Dwight Baldwin and Charlotte Fowler Baldwin.

Outside the courthouse was a massive banyan tree, which was more than 150 years old. It was still standing Wednesday but it was heavily charred and a likely victim. The Emma Farden Sharpe Hula Festival was supposed to be held Saturday under the tree, but the event’s fate is now uncertain.

Kumu hula Roselle Bailey of Wailuku said she hopes the event will go forward so that it can help uplift the people of Lahaina.

“It was sad to see the town get demolished,” Bailey said, adding that the destruction included her childhood (Lindsey family) home south of Lahaina Town at Kamani and Polanui. “It holds all of our history and spirit.”

“Our family is fine,” she added. “The ornaments on the land are burned down. It leaves time to regroup and rebuild and think anew.”

This was not the first time Lahaina was destroyed by fire.

In the early morning of New Year’s Day 1919, fire swept through the town, destroying more than 30 buildings, according to historical accounts, before it was stopped by the townspeople.

The devastating fire led to the organization of Maui’s fire department and the implementation of other fire safety measures.

“We absolutely will come back,” said Theo Morrison, the longtime executive director of the Lahaina Restoration Foundation. “We have a history of doing that.”

Morrison, who didn’t know the fate of her own Lahaina home Wednesday morning, said the town’s history can be divided into six separate but sometimes overlapping eras: pre-contact, monarchy, missionary, whaling, plantation and tourism.

The different eras, she said, brought a different group of people who recognized a community blessed with calm ocean waters and fertile grounds. Each era ended with a slump, she said, but the town always reinvented itself.

These eras left a mosaic of history, artifacts and landmarks scattered throughout the town, but now most of them may be lost.

The Lahaina Restoration Foundation was in the middle of several restoration projects, including the just-completed $20,000 repainting of the Baldwin Home Museum, part of a $500,000 effort that was set to get underway soon.

“The shingles (for a new roof) are sitting on Oahu right now,” Morrison said.

Foundation workers also were preparing a $500,000 exhibit to be installed at the Old Lahaina Courthouse. The exhibit was going to describe Moku‘ula, the 1837-1847 home of King Kamehameha III that was rediscovered under a baseball field at Lahaina’s Malu‘ulu o Lele Park.

With the fire, however, the projects are in limbo.

“This is the biggest blow we’ve ever had as a community. It’s beyond comprehending,” she said. “With the lost homes, jobs, a big chunk of the economy, it’s a game-changer.

“But we’re resilient, and we will come back.”

Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation, called Lahaina’s historic significance vast, crossing many periods of time. Its buildings reflect its past as the capital of the Hawaiian kingdom, the early days of western contact through whaling and shipping, followed by the influence of the early American missionaries and the sugar plantations.

“We are heartsick at the reports of the incalculable losses to the people of Lahaina and all of Maui,” Faulkner said in a statement. “Our best wishes go to those who have lost family and friends, homes and businesses. The impact to Hawai‘i’s historic fabric is devastating and leaves us reeling with the depth of the loss.”

Office of Hawaiian Affairs Chair Carmen “Hulu” Lindsey, who represents Maui on the board of trustees, said OHA is praying for those who lost their homes, property and livelihoods.

OHA, she said in a statement, is assessing community needs and is prepared to help.

“As kanaka, there are truly no words to describe the devastation and immeasurable losses in Lahaina, a national historic landmark, historic district, and former capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom,” she said. “Lahaina holds some of the most historically significant cultural properties and highest-ranking sacred remains of our ancestors. There is so much history that will be forever lost, a history that tethers all of us, young and old, not only to the ‘aina, but to ourselves and to each other.

“The fires of today are in part due to the climate crisis, a history of colonialism in our islands, and the loss of our right to steward our ‘aina and wai. Today we have watched our precious cultural assets, our physical connection to our ancestors, our places of remembering — all go up in smoke. The same western forces that tried to erase us as a people now threaten our survival with their destructive practices.”

On the Move: Cabanit, Tuppil, Li and Frampton

Lahaina residents escape flames and smoke, but trauma lingers.

'Gone forever': Fire devastates historic Lahaina, former capital of the Hawaiian kingdom

D issipating smoke and ash revealed the sheer devastation that a wildfire left behind in Lahaina Town, one of Hawaii’s most historic cities and onetime capital of the former kingdom.

At least 36 people were killed and hundreds of structures were damaged or destroyed in the blaze that erupted Tuesday and quickly spread throughout the western Maui community of fewer than 13,000 residents.

It’s feared that the fire consumed much of historic Front Street, home to restaurants, bars, stores and what is believed to be the United States' largest banyan — a fig tree with roots that grow out of branches and eventually reach the soil, becoming trunk-like features that expand the size of the tree. Other parts of Lahaina are also feared destroyed.

Richard Olsten, a helicopter pilot with tour operator Air Maui, said he and other pilots and mechanics flew over the scene Wednesday before work to take stock.

“All the places that are tourist areas , that are Hawaiian history, are gone, and that can’t be replaced. You can’t refurbish a building that’s just ashes now. It can’t be rebuilt — it’s gone forever,” he said.

“It’s a huge impact and blow on the history of Hawaii and Maui and Lahaina,” Olsten said.

For Francine Hollinger, a 66-year-old Native Hawaiian, the news was painful since Front Street represented history.

“It’s like losing a family member … because they’ll never be able to rebuild it, like we wouldn’t be able to bring back our mother or father," she said.

The full extent of loss won’t be known until officials can assess the damage done by the flames, which were fanned by winds caused in part by Hurricane Dora moving westward hundreds of miles to the south of the island state.

The Lahaina Historic District includes the downtown, Front Street and neighboring areas, and is home to more than 60 historic sites, according to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

A National Historic Landmark since 1962, it encompasses more than 16,000 acres and covers ocean waters stretching a mile offshore from the storied buildings.

One of them is the 200-year-old, two-story stone Wainee Church, later renamed Waiola, which has Hawaiian kings and queens buried in its graveyard. Its hall, which can seat up to 200 people, was photographed apparently engulfed in flames this week.

After Kamehameha unified Hawaii under a single kingdom by defeating the other islands' chiefs, he made Lahaina his royal residence. His successors made it the capital from 1820 to 1845, according to the National Park Service.

“It was really the political center for Hawaii,” said Davianna McGregor, a retired professor of ethnic studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Lahainaluna High School was where royalty and chiefs were educated, and also where King Kamehameha III and his Council of Chiefs drafted the first Declaration of Rights of the People and the Constitution for the Hawaiian Kingdom.

“So in that transition, from going from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy, the ruling chiefs in and around Lahaina and those educated at Lahainaluna played very prominent roles in our governance at that time,” McGregor said.

The capital was moved to Honolulu in 1845, but Lahaina’s palace remained a place where royalty would visit.

Lahaina also has a rich history of whaling, with more than 400 ships a year visiting for weeks at a time in the 1850s. Crew members sometimes clashed with missionaries on the island.

Sugar plantations and fishing boosted the economy over the decades, but tourism is the main driver now. Nearly 3 million visitors came to Maui last year, and many of them come to the historic city.

The fire is “just going to change everything,” said Lee Imada, who worked at the Maui News for 39 years, including the last eight as managing editor, until his retirement in 2020. “It’s just hard to register, even right now, what the full impact of this is going to be.”

Imada lives in Waikapu, on Maui, but has ancestral ties to Lahaina going back generations. His mother’s family owned a chain of popular general stores, and his great-uncles ran the location on Front Street until it closed around 60 years ago.

“If you went there, you could still see the name etched in the cement,” Imada said.

He recalled walking down Front Street among the tourists as they shopped or ate, looking at the banyan tree, and enjoying the beautiful ocean views from the harbor.

“It’s just sort of hard to believe that it’s not there,” Imada said. “Everything that I remember the place to be is not there anymore.”

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .

See the historic sites of Lahaina before and after the Maui wildfires

The landmarks of lahaina have been badly damaged and restored before. preservationists hope to rebuild.

Plantation-era wooden buildings turned to ashes. Landmarks made from coral, lava rock and concrete hollowed out by flames. A once-quaint historic street blackened and wrecked.

The wildfire that ravaged Maui this week , killing at least 80, decimated homes and incinerated cultural sites in the historic town of Lahaina . As rescue crews continue working and more than 14,000 people face displacement, the focus there is on helping those who lost their homes, treating the injured and locating the hundreds still missing.

Hawaii utility under scrutiny for not cutting power to reduce fire risks

Adding to the devastation is the loss of some of Lahaina’s culturally rich places, spots that visitors to Maui remember and locals had painstakingly preserved. Over the last 200 years, most of them have been damaged or destroyed – by the strong Kauaula wind, by accidental fires, by time – and rebuilt.

That could happen again, meaning the precious sites may not be lost forever.

“I know we’re going to rebuild, and I know the entire town is going to come together,” said Kimberly Flook, deputy executive director of the Lahaina Restoration Foundation.

“The physical manifestation of the many stories of Lahiana have been lost, but the stories themselves are not,” she said. “The stories have not gone anywhere. The culture lives in the community.”

What we know about the cause of the Maui wildfires

The town is rich in royal Hawaiian history and home to remnants of the missionary era — a place sometimes called Maui’s crown jewel or the colonial Williamsburg of the Pacific. Taking stock of the wreckage there was only just beginning. Flook’s organization was making assumptions about buildings’ fates based on videos and photos, satellite images and the path of the fire.

Maui wildfire updates

Ticking through a list of the town’s historic sites meant ticking through a list of places that were likely mostly destroyed, from a Chinese hall that once served as a social center for immigrants to an erstwhile jail that rounded up rowdy sailors for infractions like drunkenness and adultery.

“It was basically a matchbox waiting to go up,” Lee Anne Wong, executive chef at Papa’aina at the now-decimated Pioneer Inn, said of Lahaina’s historic district. “It was all old wood buildings that had been dried out in the sun.”

Maui fires not just due to climate change but a ‘compound disaster’

Wooden structures – the Wo Hing Museum and Cookhouse, the cell blocks and gatehouse at the Old Lahaina Prison – are presumed to be gone. The Waiola Church, which recently celebrated its 200th anniversary, was engulfed in flames. The Lahaina Harbor was charred and blackened, wreckage floating in the water.

Lahaina historic districts map

Historic district 1

Historic district 2

Historic site

Papalaua St.

Lahainaluna Rd.

Catholic Church

Bolles’

Stone house

Holy Innocents

1. Wo Hing Museum

2. Masters Reading Room

3. Baldwin Home

4. Old Courthouse

5. Holy Innocents Church

6. Waiola Church

Sources: Maui County, Planet Labs PBC

Photos: Eric Broder Van Dyke/Getty Images,

B. David Cathell/Alamy Stock Photo, Atomazul/Shutterstock,

YinYang/Getty Images, Crbellette/Shutterstock,

Courtesy of Lahaina News

SAMUEL GRANADOS / THE WASHINGTON POST

Luakini St.

Richard’s

Ship Market

Stone House

Fanny Young’s

Malu-ulu-o-lele Park

Waiola Church

Photos: Eric Broder Van Dyke/Getty Images, B. David Cathell/Alamy Stock Photo, Atomazul/Shutterstock,

YinYang/Getty Images, Crbellette/Shutterstock, Courtesy of Lahaina News

Stone and concrete buildings – the Baldwin Home, the oldest house on Maui; the Old Lahaina Courthouse, which housed a heritage museum; the Masters Reading Room, an 1800s club for ship captains – may have their walls left. Made of coral, lava rock and concrete, such historical buildings often had wooden floors, roofs and other parts, Flook said. She saw a video of Baldwin Home on fire and satellite images showed the courthouse’s coral block walls left standing.

After five hours in ocean, Maui fire survivor is ‘blessed to be alive’

The restaurant Fleetwood’s – which stood on the merchant site that served as the town’s “center of life” in the Plantation Era, Flook said – was reduced to charred walls and rubble.

The destruction is “pretty devastating,” said Nicholas Rajkovich, a University of Buffalo architecture professor who briefly lived on Maui in the mid-2000s.

Powered by hurricane-force winds, the wildfires on Maui nearly impossible to prepare for or combat. In Hawaii, hurricanes and floods pose more common threats.

“We certainly knew that if a fire started, we were ripe for an issue, but natural fires weren’t a major concern,” Flook said. “In terms of climate change, we were way more focused on sea rise and king tides and tsunamis.”

In photos: The scene as deadly wildfires devastate parts of Hawaii

Sometimes, buildings can be moved or raised in efforts to guard against extreme weather. But that often doesn’t work for buildings of cultural significance, which are tied to a specific location and derive their meaning from their context, Rajkovich said.

And on the whole, little can be done to protect buildings caught in the path of such a catastrophic blaze, especially wooden ones, experts said.

“Based on the images I’ve seen, it seems pretty hard to imagine what could possibly protect a building in this context,” said Daniel Barber, head of the University of Technology Sydney’s architecture department.

The cultural loss is steep. Lahaina holds architectural and historic significance, and its buildings speak to the town’s Hawaiian origins, said Bill Chapman, head of the graduate program in historic preservation at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.

He is working with colleagues on a book about architectural conservation that was supposed to dive into Lahaina’s history. Now, it will require a caveat.

“We’re going to have to have a dark box in there,” he said, “to explain that Lahaina isn’t what it was.”

Most of the town’s landmarks had been painstakingly restored at least once over the decades. The Waiola Church, which had celebrated its 200th anniversary in May, had been destroyed by weather or accidental fires and rebuilt four times before: in 1858, 1894, 1947 and 1951.

And in 1919, a fire broke out that destroyed part of Lahaina. What was built in its place, Flook said, became “part of the flavor of the town,” an area people loved.

“We’ve rebuilt fallen structures from the ground up before, so it’s not impossible to redo it,” said Flook.

When they can return to town, the Lahaina Restoration Foundation staff will begin surveying the damage, starting on insurance claims and FEMA paperwork. Buildings with some stable bones left could possibly be restored; the wooden ones would have to be fully recreated, Flook said.

Eventually, preservationists will likely solicit donations and start making plans to rebuild.

For now, the focus remains on humanitarian aid.

Wong, the chef who worked at the nearly 120-year-old Pioneer Inn, described community efforts to help displaced people and coordinate donations of supplies. She was working with a group to make lunches for 2,000 people and dinners for another 2,000.

“The priority is life, is our neighbors and our friends and our family. … I can always build another restaurant,” Wong said. “We need to find safety and shelter and food and water. That is all anybody is thinking about.”

Natalie B. Compton contributed to this report.

Wildfires in Hawaii

What’s happening: After the deadly wildfire in Maui devastated the town of Lahaina, people search for their loved ones as they face the devastation of losing homes , schools and businesses .

How did the fires start? Officials have not announced a cause, though video and data shows it was probably power lines . The spread of nonnative grasses and hurricane-stoked winds could have been factors, along with the indirect influence of climate change .

What areas have been impacted? Fires burned across multiple Hawaiian islands — these maps show where . The town of Lahaina on the island of Maui suffered widespread damage, and historical landmarks across the island were damaged . These photos show the extent of the blaze .

Can I help? Many organizations are accepting donations to assist those affected by the wildfires. Visitors returning to West Maui are encouraged to practice regenerative tourism .

"We will rebuild. We will return.

Until the day we can welcome you home again, please stand with us in our Hope Rising campaign." - Dave Schubert "Commodore"

About Hope Rising Lahaina

Photo: CNN News

Aloha and welcome aboard the Hope Rising Lahaina Yacht Club Project. All profits will support the club and the rebuilding of the clubhouse.

Founded in 1965, the Lahaina Yacht Club has been a haven for generations of kama’aina, members, guests, and visitors from clubs around the world. Sailors, fisherman, ocean enthusiasts, and even landlubbers were immediately met with aloha and advised to make themselves at home.

Walking through the saloon doors felt like a journey through history in real-time. The present has destroyed our clubhouse, sailboats, and ocean vessels. However, our future is bright. The members & guests are the heart & soul of our club.

We will rebuild. We will return. Until the day we can welcome you home again, please stand with us by participating in our Hope Rising campaign.

The Lahaina Yacht Club extends to you Mahalo Nui Loa for your kokua and your business.

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'Burned down to ashes': Why devastated Lahaina Town is such a cherished place on Maui

After Maui's Lahaina Town was razed by fire Tuesday night , residents and visitors are mourning the loss of cultural and religious sites that trace their roots back centuries.

More than 250 structures were damaged or destroyed , according to Maui County, as entire blocks of Lahaina − once the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii − went up in smoke.

Lahaina Town has also long claimed home to the largest banyan tree in the U.S., which was scorched in the fires .

The fire spread and grew faster than anyone could have imagined. In a few hours, the wind-driven blaze tore through popular Front Street and decimated the town center, which traces its roots to the 1700s and was on the National Register of Historic Places.

“Lahaina Town is now burned down to ashes, the whole entire town − hotels, buildings, the historic sites,'' said Leomana Turalde. He told USA TODAY his mother, Jon Ho’okano, 56, worked for years as a dancer at Old Lahaina Luau, considered a "well-preserved epicenter of Hawaiian culture and storytelling," the venue says on its website .

Lahaina has a population of around 13,000, according to the 2020 U.S. Census .

How old is Lahaina Town?

More than 1,000 years ago, long before the U.S. was founded, people were living on the Hawaiian islands and leaving their mark . From the years 1,000-1,200, people from Polynesia traveled about 2,500 miles north and settled on the islands of Hawaii, the National Park Service says on its website .

Throughout history, different Hawaiian rulers vied for power over the islands, and Lahaina was consistently a site of royal and religious importance with its cemeteries and historic churches.

Waiola Church, which burned in the fire , was the site of the start of Christianity in Hawaii in the early 1800s, according to the church's website .

The church crumbled , but the loss will be temporary, Anela Rosa , the church's lay minister of 13 years told USA TODAY. She said the church will bring people together for the next service, even if they have to use pop-up tents.

"This church, this congregation, has a resiliency unlike any other," Rosa said. "That's why I know we will rebuild and be better than ever."

Before Hawaii became a U.S. territory in 1898, King Kamehameha I made Lahaina the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

Also in the 1800s, Hawaii's royal leaders built a brick palace in Lahaina, along with other royal residences, according to one of the town's tourism websites .

Lahaina Banyan Court Park is home to the famous banyan fig tree planted in 1873 after being imported from India. It was threatened by the fires and suffered damage to trunks and limbs but  remains standing , the Honolulu Civil Beat reported.

Fires destroy 'cultural heritage' in Lahaina

Locals say losing so much of Lahaina is painful because the culture the place represents connects to a time with revered roots.

For Francine Hollinger, a 66-year-old Native Hawaiian, losing Lahaina was "like losing a family member."

“Because they’ll never be able to rebuild it, like we wouldn’t be able to bring back our mother or father,” she said.

While it’s still difficult to assess the damage, state Sen. Gilbert Keith-Agaran told USA TODAY various landmarks have reportedly been lost – historic businesses and cemeteries where royal figures were buried. 

“It’s a real loss. Hawaii and Maui have tried really hard to preserve and protect those places for many, many years … not for the sake of tourism but because it’s part of our cultural heritage,” said Keith-Agaran, whose district includes Kahului in central Maui.

“We just lost a large part of our heritage,” he said.

In addition to being a historic area, Lahaina Town is a residential and tourist area with a commercial district. For decades, it has been considered the west side of Maui's main downtown area.

The area is also known for two longtime beach resorts, Kaanapali and Kapalua. Lahaina Harbor attracts tourists with water sports, fishing and boat rides.

Contributing: Terry Collins, Alia Wong, N'dea Yancey-Bragg, Jorge L. Ortiz, Kathleen Wong, Ashley Lewis, Itzel Luna, USA TODAY ; Associated Press

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‘I’m heartbroken’: residents and tourists mourn the destruction of Lahaina

The historic town was beloved by visitors and locals alike, who now wonder how and when the community can be rebuilt

J ust over a week since wildfires ripped through the western part of the Hawaiian island of Maui and killed at least 110 people , residents, historians and international tourists are still processing the near total destruction of Lahaina .

Brad Shirakawa, 68, a photojournalist and multimedia producer from San Jose, California, has been travelling to Lahaina since 2003.

“I’ve been there about a dozen times; I was there in July last year. I have some friends there now and some family that live on the island. There’s nothing better than enjoying a cold brew while listening to the musicians on the west side of Maui, [the] Lahaina and the Kaanapali beach area,” he says.

“I am fortunate to have met some of them: Ron Hetteen and Damon Parrillo, Kawika Lum Ho and Sam Ahia. Sam was well known for playing at Kimo’s restaurant on Front Street, which burned to the ground. I’ve donated to Legacy of Aloha, which was set up to aid the employees of Kimo’s, who have now lost their jobs of course.”

Shirakawa believes locals having to navigate the aftermath of the inferno, which is already the deadliest US wildfire in over a century, face many years of great difficulty and frustration, with some probably having to leave the island for good.

Shirakawa is uncertain when he will return to Lahaina. “Probably not this year, and maybe not next year either,” he says. “I’m going to look at the news and see what they say. If local people say ‘don’t come’, I’m not going to go. I don’t want to make it worse.”

Seventy-two-year-old retiree Scott Werden, who lives on Maui and has been surfing in Lahaina every week for years, is still reeling from the catastrophe, and has been observing with mixed feelings how tourism has altered the historic town over time.

“Lahaina has dramatically changed from being a town that served the needs of the local community to serving the needs of tourism,” he says.

“For most of us living here, Lahaina was viewed as a bit touristy these days, but it is, or was, still the cultural and historic heart of Maui and there is a lot of pride in it.”

Many local residents of the island, Werden says, are upset about the fact that tourists are still arriving in nearby areas to enjoy a holiday, despite the devastation of Lahaina.

“Maui is small enough for there to be a lot of interconnection, and everyone has friends or family members that are affected. To see people frolicking on the beach just a few miles from where bodies are still being pulled from the ashes is shocking,” he says.

“People here have a love-hate relationship with tourism anyway, and this tragedy just amplifies that dichotomy. I think most people, myself included, would prefer for tourists to give the community some consideration and stay away for a bit.”

One elementary school in Lahaina, the King Kamehameha III school, completely burned down, Werden says, while three other schools sustained some fire damage but survived.

“I believe they are closed for now. I am on the board of a Maui non-profit that is running a fire relief fund that is focused on quickly getting financial aid to affected families, particularly those with keiki [kids]. School was supposed to start last week but displaced kids have lost everything – school supplies, clothes and so on. We hope to help them get going again.

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“The families that have been displaced, some to the other side of the island, some to Oahu, are now in housing that is only temporary, so even if they get their children enrolled in a new school close to where they are sheltered, they will likely have to move again soon. It is terribly disruptive to the children and really hard on a culture that values close family and community relationships that are now torn apart.”

Werden believes the disaster will cause many locals to move away permanently, and he is looking with trepidation to what will come next, as the cost to rebuild the town is expected to exceed $5.5bn, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“The economics are not in locals’ favour, unfortunately. It will cost them a lot of money to rebuild Lahaina, and there will be endless debates about how to rebuild in the face of rising ocean levels, climate change and the need to have more affordable housing,” Werden says.

“These debates are starting now and they will go on for years while the displaced are waiting.”

Anne Harris, 53, from northern British Columbia, Canada, is among the scores of North Americans who shared with the Guardian how lucky they feel to have been able to travel to the historical town in the past.

“We visited this gorgeous little town in 2010 during a family holiday to Maui. It was charming. Touristy, yes, but old, with wooden buildings all down Front Street, a stately courthouse building shaded by the famous banyan tree and restaurants all facing the ocean,” Harris recalls.

“Our trip on the sailboat that afternoon provided some great views of the whole town, which stretched along the coastline without any modern high-rise hotels to spoil the impression of an old world, historic place. This was our only trip to Maui. Every year we’ve spoken of going back, and spending more time in the Lahaina area, but budgets and family commitments always made it impossible.

“I spent some time this weekend going through my photos to remind myself of all that has been lost. The whole of Front Street and key buildings including the courthouse and the Baldwin home museum are gone.

“I’m heartbroken to see what has happened to this lovely place and the lovely people living there.”

Harris says she is donating to the Red Cross and the Maui Humane Society to support rescue and rebuilding works on the island, after seeing several social media posts, including a video from Barack Obama, suggesting ways in which people can help.

“I want to do my part, however small,” she says. “I really hope that Lahaina can be rebuilt, and that infrastructure can be developed to better ensure it is protected from natural disasters as best as possible.”

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Published on August 9th, 2023 | by Editor

Tragedy in Lahaina

Published on August 9th, 2023 by Editor -->

Amid the death and destruction due to wildfires in Maui, aerial video show the town of Lahaina having suffered significant damage, which includes Lahaina Yacht Club on Front Street and nearby Lahaina Harbor. Lahaina Town is a historic whaling village and tourism hotspot in Maui, Hawaii.

Tags: Lahaina fire , Lahaina Yacht Club , tragedy

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Lahaina victims mourned as search continues 'until all are found'

Sep. 10—Families and friends remember David Nuesca Jr., 59, and John "Thumper " McCarthy, 74, who died in the Lahaina inferno.

WAILUKU—No new names since Tuesday have been added to list of those known to have died in the Aug. 8 Lahaina wildfire, but the slow, methodical process of identifying the 115 individuals recovered so far continues.

The Maui Police Department has released the names of 55 of the fatalities, with six others identified but whose relatives have yet to be notified.

On Aug. 29, Maui County reported that 100 % of the 5-square-mile burn zone had been surveyed by specialized search and recovery teams. Officials said that all the recognizable human remains to be found had been recovered, leaving in doubt whether the true number of people killed in the inferno that destroyed over 2, 200 structures, most of them residences, will ever be known.

Officials added that efforts to recover and identify bone fragments and other partial remains will be ongoing as the ruins of Lahaina are cleared.

Since Thursday, the county's daily fire update has reported that 99 % of the disaster area had been searched. When asked about the discrepancy, a county Joint Information Center spokesperson said, "We backed it up to 99 % because the government (Federal Emergency Management Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Maui County ...) will always be looking. There are still those that are unaccounted for. It will remain at 99 % until all are found. The search for those unaccounted for will continue."

The FBI and MPD on Friday released still unaccounted-for in the wake of the deadly fire and are seeking information on scores of others who were included on a much longer list released the previous week.

MPD has yet to officially acknowledge the death of Kirk Carter, 44, of Lahaina, who died Aug. 15 at Straub Medical Center's Burn Unit in Honolulu. The department did not respond to Honolulu Star-Advertiser requests last week asking why Carter's name has not been added to, even though the Honolulu Medical Examiner confirmed his identity and notified his family almost a month ago. MPD also did not respond to a request to clarify whether Carter is included in its wildfire death toll of 115.

MEANWHILE, the families and friends of those who died in the Lahaina fire are struggling to deal with that knowledge, along with their own losses.

Davilynn Severson recalls saying goodbye to her uncle, David Nuesca Jr., 59, on Aug. 8 as she departed from their longtime family home on Malolo Place. Both her husband and 4-year-old daughter suffer from bad asthma, she said, and they wanted to leave before the smoke from the wildfire worsened.

Four generations of their extended family lived in two homes on a property that was built by her grandparents.

"Everything happened so fast, as everyone knows in Lahaina. That fire was definitely devastating, " said Severson, 32. "But that was our third fire that we fought in Lahaina. Including myself, we didn't think this fire was going to turn out to be that way.

"The last conversation that I had with my uncle was, 'I 'll see you later.'"

Before they left, Nuesca tried to reassure his niece that everything would be OK.

"My uncle said, 'Nah, no worries ; not going come down here.'

"I'm not sure what my uncle's last words would have been, but what I believe, when I talk about my uncle, is definitely he would've just stayed with the house."

Nuesca's name was released Aug. 27 by MPD as one of the 115 Lahaina wildfire fatalities.

The happy-go-lucky Nuesca was raised in Kahana and Lahaina, Severson said. In his younger years he paddled for Kahana Canoe Club in a dominating crew known as the "egg-­beaters, " because "they were untouchable, " according to his niece.

"As a brother, an uncle, and grand-uncle, he was always willing to give anything he had, especially to the kids, and lived the simple life of enjoying each day and each other's company."

Eleven other family members escaped Lahaina safely and for now are living in different locations, adding to their sadness and grief. Severson and her husband and daughter received a voucher to stay in a Kihei Airbnb unit but will have to move Sept. 27, she said.

"It just sucks and it's sad that we're all kind of scattered, because there's not really a place that can hold all of us at once, and we do have a couple dogs, " she said. "So it's frustrating and hard to find help and hope."

Anyone wishing to assist the family may donate directly to them through her mother's @cganer Venmo account.

RETIRED FISHING charter captain John "Thumper " McCarthy, 74, was a fixture at the Lahaina Yacht Club on Front Street.

"He greeted everyone with a personal greeting, loved to see people, loved to be around everybody, " said Dave Schubert, yacht club commodore. "To be fair, Front Street has probably been his life longer than the eight years I've known him, whether he was at the yacht club or whether he used to go Pi Artisan (Pizzeria ), or on days we weren't open even the Lahaina Fish Co. He had a little scooter for the last couple of years and would go up and down the street. He knew everybody."

To celebrate his 70th birthday, Schubert said an impromptu parade was held with McCarthy sitting in the back of a convertible cruising up and down Front Street accompanied by honking horns.

Friends previously had rallied around McCarthy last summer with a GoFundMe fundraiser to help with his recovery after a fall that affected his mobility.

Originally from Newport Beach, Calif., his remains were found at his home off Front Street. MPD released McCarthy's name Sept. 3.

"The outpouring over the weeks of uncertainly when we didn't know, we were getting phone calls, messages and emails from the mainland asking, 'How's Thumper ?' We was extremely well-known and extremely missed, " Schubert said. "We're missing a huge part of our yacht club."

The venerable Lahaina Yacht Club also lost its 58-year-old clubhouse in the fire. The club has 800 members, including 400 on Maui, and hosts the biennial Vic-Maui Yacht Race, first contested in 1965, from Victoria, British Columbia, to Lahaina.

Losses included boats used in the club's popular summer sailing classes for youngsters, according to Schubert, who lost his home in the fire, escaping the flames with his girlfriend with only 20 minutes to spare.

The yacht club's auxiliary group has been making checks of members and staff, and so far McCarthy is the only one known to have died in the fire. A relief fund has been set up to assist employees, about a dozen of whom lost their homes, at.

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Wildfires devastate Maui, killing over 90 people and destroying iconic Lahaina Yacht Club

Key points:

• Wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui have killed over 90 people and destroyed more than 250 buildings, including the iconic Lahaina Yacht Club.
• The fires started on August 8, with the entire town of Lahaina and the yacht club being devastated.
• Despite the loss, the community is resilient and committed to rebuilding.

The wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui have caused extensive damage and destruction, with over 90 people killed and more than 250 buildings, including the historic Lahaina Yacht Club, destroyed. As the co-host of the Victoria to Maui International Yacht Race, the yacht club holds great significance to the community. The entire town of Lahaina has been devastated, but the resilient community is determined to rebuild and come back stronger. The LYC Commodore expresses gratitude for the support received and emphasizes the importance of looking out for the well-being of families, friends, and membership. #LahainaStrong

The summary of the linked article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence technology from OpenAI

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