Members Living in Hawaii

[Crayola13]

I wanted to check in and see how those of you who live in Hawaii are doing. I’m not sure which islands you are on. Not Maui, I hope.

 

[Copabanana]

I have been worried about the same thing.

 

[New Leaf]

Aloha Crayola,
Mahalo nui for asking. I am not on Maui, but we are all deeply affected by the tragedy of the wildfires. The news is not showing the amount of devastation, fires are still burning in the mountain areas, and folks are just overwhelmed with the loss of life and property as well as the many souls still unaccounted for. Residents are asking that people hold off on vacation plans to the islands as the resources are needed to aid those who have lost everything. There are many drives to get supplies into Maui to help, but coordinating efforts has been difficult as roads have been closed to the west side. Folks are now being encouraged to gift monetary donations so that the right amount of resources can be distributed. My heart has been heavy these last few days as more and more information comes through social media. The people who escaped the fires in Lahaina had no warning, as communication was down in the afternoon. Please pray for Maui, and if you are compelled to help, Hawaii Community Foundation is vetted and has set up a fund on their website “Maui Strong” www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org.
(My apologies if not allowed)
Hold your loved ones close.
Prayers for all those trying to recover.
New Leaf

 

[Deni D]

New Leaf, I'm happy to hear you are okay but very sad about Maui and also the Big Island. We are seeing mostly news of Lahaina with the loss of life and history there. I am in tears.

Anyone who has gone through a natural disaster knows the pictures and news don't come close to the actual situation. And we also know this is going to be a long road, years after the news no longer gets people's attention. Thank you for posting the link to the Hawaii Community Foundation. If you come across any other links for contributing please post them also.

(My apologies if not allowed)

We do allow links when appropriate. This is quite appropriate as some of our long standing members of our community are from Hawaii.

aloha a pule

 

[Nandina]

My heart breaks for the people of Maui and all of Hawaii. We know you are strong people though, who will get through this disaster even stronger.

Thank you for the link to the Hawaii Community Foundation. I plan to donate as soon as I am done writing this.

I cannot imagine the devastation to be worse than what we see on the news, New Leaf. It is just beyond words.

My prayer would be that we can all pull together and help our loving friends on the islands of Hawaii who are suffering so greatly right now.

Being island residents, they don’t have quick access to certain resources like we do on the mainland and shipping to the islands adds additional expense. So funds are desperately needed.

And from what I heard on the news, there had already been a housing shortage there—something like 10,000 homes short even before the wildfires. Sadly, there are thousands more people who need homes now.

I’ve heard that many kind people in Hawaii and perhaps other areas in the United States have opened up their homes to those affected by the tragedy. I am grateful there are people like you in the world and that such kindness exists. I pray that God will bless you and all the people of Hawaii, and keep you safe and strong.

 

[New Leaf]

Aloha Copa, Deni and Nandina,
Thank you so much for your thoughts and keeping our island ohana and those directly affected by this disaster in your prayers.

Anyone who has gone through a natural disaster knows the pictures and news don't come close to the actual situation. And we also know this is going to be a long road, years after the news no longer gets people's attention. Thank you for posting the link to the Hawaii Community Foundation.

This is going to be a very long road to recovery. There are Hawaiians living in the outskirts of Lahaina that are standing ground in their homes, some have returned to zones close to Lahaina to help distribute the many donations that have flooded the island. Local people island wide have taken up the task to deliver goods to these areas as there have been reports of necessities not reaching the folks who have hunkered down in their homes in the outlying areas who are helping displaced families. For native Hawaiians, it is an especially difficult time, as they are defending their homelands and are cognizant of “disaster speculation.” As you all may well know, many of our native people have been priced out of paradise and forced to leave the islands in order to make a decent living on the continent. Many of our Lahaina families are lineal descendants of the land and have remained there, despite lucrative offers from developers. On top of grieving the unfathomable losses they have suffered, they are now faced with dealing with calls and offers from unscrupulous land grabbers. This is a very real issue. In the past, our people have had some protection with Lahaina designated an historical district. Now that most of the old buildings have been destroyed, the fear is what “rebuilding” will look like. We are all praying that Native leaders in the area will have a seat at the table. I am not seeing their presence on news conferences and hope that at the least, the government is sensitive to this and is consulting with our people. I don’t want to politicize the situation, but as a colonized people, this is a very precarious, multi faceted situation. Add to that, we have two storm systems approaching the islands that we are all watching. Sorry for the long rant, but I think it is important that folks understand the plight of these people.

We do allow links when appropriate. This is quite appropriate as some of our long standing members of our community are from Hawaii.

Thank you so much Deni.

My heart breaks for the people of Maui and all of Hawaii. We know you are strong people though, who will get through this disaster even stronger.

We are seeing how folks have pulled together to get through this, to ship donations over to Maui, to use their own resources and send necessities by the boatload to people who are hunkered down in their homes and unable to leave. Many do not have access to gas, medical supplies and whatnot. There are those who are housing families and do not want to leave for fear that they will not be able to return. The road going in to the westside has been heavy with traffic, attempts to create a system to let residents in and out have unfortunately been thwarted by a few “disaster spectators”. But, people have been creative and while the government has been slow to create solutions, the local people have taken up the call and found ways to get supplies to people in need.

My prayer would be that we can all pull together and help our loving friends on the islands of Hawaii who are suffering so greatly right now.

Thank you so much. Prayers are powerful.

And from what I heard on the news, there had already been a housing shortage there—something like 10,000 homes short even before the wildfires. Sadly, there are thousands more people who need homes now.

There are many issues with homelessness here in Hawaii. Median house range is over a million. We have many condos and homes that have been bought by foreign investors and remain empty most of the year. It’s crazy. I hope that any future plans will accommodate those displaced to be able to move back into Lahaina. For now, FEMA and the State are working with hotels and airbnbs to provide housing.

I’ve heard that many kind people in Hawaii and perhaps other areas in the United States have opened up their homes to those affected by the tragedy. I am grateful there are people like you in the world and that such kindness exists. I pray that God will bless you and all the people of Hawaii, and keep you safe and strong.

Thank you Nandina, yes there have been many worldwide who have reached out to help. We are grateful for that. The people of Lahaina and those residential areas surrounding the town have suffered so much. They have witnessed unspeakable things. We are all grieving and apprehensive of what will entail as recovery efforts continue. One very sad detail the news has left out, schools in the area were closed due to the high winds and fires. There were many children at home, while parents were working. Roads were closed due to fallen power lines. People were trapped and forced to flee towards
the raging fire, through Front street, a very narrow and congested road. Lahaina is surrounded by abandoned sugar cane fields. Private landowners have dirt roads that lead to the highway and mountains. They are gated, and were locked. So, there was no other way for folks to go. No warning, no evacuation attempts. No cell phone service. People wonder why folks stayed. Earlier in the day, the word was to shelter in place. I am sorry to write this, and for any distress it may cause for those reading it. But I believe it is important for folks to know. The firefighters who did respond, were attempting to extinguish the fire, while they witnessed their own homes burning. The fire hydrants ran out of water.
It is said that the winds that drove the fire into Lahaina gusting at 60-80 pushed the fire a mile a minute.
Sorry for the long rant.
We are all hurting and hoping that there will be transparency and solutions for the future and safety for people in congested areas of the islands. For now, the greatest concern is for those who are grieving, for those who are still looking for missing loved ones. May God strengthen them and cover them in love.
Mahalo nui Loa for your continued prayers.
Leaf

 

[Nandina]

Thank you for the update New Leaf. You provided details that you don’t often hear on the news. I hadn’t heard about the land speculators there who are taking such advantage of hurting people. Shame on them. I plan to contact a news agency and suggest that they publicize this atrocity.

I was thinking about another friend on this forum, Kalahou, who I believe lives in Hawaii. Do you know if she is anywhere in the vicinity of the disaster? I hope she’ll check in with us and let us know she is ok.

Please continue to update us on the conditions there. Sending love and prayers to you and your island ohana.

 

[New Leaf]

Hi Nandina and friends,
We are slowly processing all of this and praying for those on Maui. The community has gone above and beyond to help.

I was thinking about another friend on this forum, Kalahou, who I believe lives in Hawaii. Do you know if she is anywhere in the vicinity of the disaster? I hope she’ll check in with us and let us know she is ok.

I’m hoping she is okay as well. Although I don’t think she is living on Maui, I’m hoping she was not visiting there last week.
I will keep you guys updated. We are hoping the storms forming around us will pass without too much affect.
Prayers