While on a vacation in Hawaii, Socialist Workers Party campaign supporter Val Libby visited Maui, which was devastated one year ago by a wildfire caused by errors made by the power company there, driven by its thirst for profit.
“Today Maui looks pretty much the same as before, with the stark exception that the historic town of Lahaina on the coast, where the fire was the most fierce, is completely gone,” Libby told the Militant. Over 100 people were killed in the fires Aug. 8, 2023. Damage was estimated at $5 billion, including to homes that were utterly wiped out.
“Signs are up in restaurants and hotels asking visitors not to ask workers there about the fire,” she said. “I did speak to one hotel worker who told me his family lived about 4 miles away and didn’t get any fire damage. They were without electricity, water, cell service and internet for over a week.
“I asked why the signs are up, and he said many people there were still traumatized by what had happened.
“But the main thing he wanted to tell me was that the news media never explained what really happened after the fire,” she said. “He said boats of all sizes converged on the area to bring supplies. People on shore gathered together to unload and bring the aid to distribution centers for people to get.
“He said the way average people pulled together gave him confidence in a recovery.”
This is an all-too-often ignored aspect of all social catastrophes. While the bosses and the government try to evade responsibility, it is working people who come together to try and help out.
Most of the area has been cleaned up by now, Libby said, but there is very little rebuilding. “I was told people have filed for permits to do so, but they’re all tied up in red tape.”
A successful class action lawsuit charged that Hawaiian Electric and its parent company bore major responsibility for the disaster because they didn’t cut off their power despite warnings high winds could blow them down and spark wildfires. Other defendants included the state, Maui County, Hawaiian Telcom and Kamehameha Schools.
The lawsuit has been settled, and the utility said Aug. 2 they would cover roughly half of the $4 billion judgment.
But no money is going to those who were injured because there’s still a legal dispute. Insurance companies that shelled out some payments to people who had paid premiums for years sued to be paid back from the settlement before any money goes to the victims. That would leave little left over for them.
A Maui court ruled Aug. 13 in favor of the plaintiffs, telling the insurance bosses they had to drop those lawsuits. Of course, that’s not the end. They can still appeal, pushing back further any payouts to those who lost everything.