Maui wildfire survivors will get an additional year of housing help from FEMA
LAHAINA, Hawaii — Survivors from last year deadly wildfire that decimated a historic Maui town will receive an additional year of housing assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Housing Recovering from the Lahaina wildfire on August 8, 2023, which killed at least 102 people and displaced 12,000, was a major challenge.
FEMA has focused on providing rental housing to survivors who lacked insurance coverage for fire losses. The agency rents houses directly to more than 1,200 households and provides subsidies to 500 others to use them themselves. Many of the vacation rentals are located in Kihei, 25 miles from Lahaina.
The deadliest American wildfire in a century made insecurity Many survivors had to move multiple times, often from one hotel room to another.
The housing assistance was set to end in February, but FEMA approved a one-year extension that will end on Feb. 10, 2026, according to a statement issued Monday by Hawaiian officials.
A report published earlier this month by the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization, it said unemployment and poverty have risen and incomes have fallen among Maui wildfire survivors. The report, based on 402 survey responses reflecting the communities affected by last year’s fires, found that nine in 10 respondents lost their homes.
βOn behalf of our state, I would like to express my gratitude to FEMA for this favorable response to my administration’s request. The continued support that FEMA and our other federal partners have provided has been critical to our people’s recovery,β Hawaii Governor Josh Green said in a statement.
βI am reminded that when President Joe Biden visited Lahaina, he said he and his administration would be with our people for as long as it takes, and we are humbly grateful for that steadfast commitment,β Green said.