Mia Palacio felt like she lost a piece of herself after wildfires destroyed much of her hometown of Lahaina in 2023. 

Palacio struggled to deal with the grief of losing her town and home. She isolated herself from her loved ones and often felt angry 鈥� that her family didn鈥檛 have a permanent place to stay, that more people weren鈥檛 able to evacuate the night of Aug. 8, that she was moving between high schools where she didn鈥檛 feel welcomed. 

The pain only intensified as the months wore on and, finally, nearing the first anniversary of the fires, Palacio reached out for help.

Hundreds of students like Palacio have struggled mentally since the fires and not all have received the help they need. The Hawai驶i Department of Education estimates more than a third of Maui students lost a family member, sustained a serious injury or had a parent lose a job after the fires, which killed 102 people and damaged more than 3,300 properties in Lahaina. 

Two years later, many in Lahaina are ready to return to normal. But therapists say students鈥� mental health challenges continue to mount. 

That鈥檚 common after a disaster, especially at the two-year mark, when adrenaline wears off and stress remains high, said Christopher Knightsbridge, one of several researchers at the University of Hawai驶i who has studied the well-being of Lahaina fire survivors. While kids may feel numb immediately following a disaster, after two years, they鈥檙e facing the toll of constant uncertainty and change, he said.  

It鈥檚 a phenomenon seen wherever schooling has been disrupted by natural disasters, reporting by Honolulu Civil Beat, The Associated Press and several other news outlets shows. But a couple years after the disaster, schools are not always prepared with extra mental health supports. On Maui, for instance, the island is dealing with an ongoing shortage of specialists. In the past few years, the number of psychiatrists serving youth has dropped from four to two, even as demand has grown.

鈥淭he crisis isn鈥檛 over,鈥� Knightsbridge said. 

Two Years In 

Palacio made progress with the help of a school counselor and then a local organization that supports teens鈥� mental health through outdoor activities and adventures. Now, the senior at Lahainaluna High School said she鈥檚 more comfortable confiding in others and controlling her emotions, and she takes pride in mentoring younger students who have also struggled since the fires. 

But two years in, many kids still wrestle with depression and anxiety.

DayJahiah Valdivia, a senior at K墨hei Charter School, said her stress levels still spike when there鈥檚 strong winds or small brush fires on Maui. Valdivia lives in Upcountry Maui, which also faced wildfires that burned over a thousand acres of land on the same day as the 2023 Lahaina fires. Her home was spared, but it took months for her family to return because their property was covered in soot and needed professional cleaning. 

She feels less anxious now that her family has discussed their escape plan for future disasters. But a summer fire near a friend鈥檚 home in Central Maui renewed her fears about her loved ones鈥� safety. 

鈥淭he anxiety never really wore off,鈥� she said, adding it was especially difficult to concentrate in class or feel safe on windy days during the first year after the fires. 

In a  conducted in 2024, just over half of children reported symptoms of depression, and 30% were likely facing an anxiety disorder. Nearly half of kids in the study, ages 10 to 17, were experiencing PTSD. 

Children in disaster-torn towns across the U.S. can relate. 

In Paradise, California, where the 2018 Camp Fire took 85 lives, a protracted period of disillusionment followed what some called the 鈥渉ero phase,鈥� where the community pulled together and vowed to resurrect their town. Both Lahaina and Paradise had housing shortages after their fires, so families had to move away or live with friends to go to school or work in the area. In general, students who don鈥檛 have a permanent living arrangement tend to struggle more academically and have more behavioral challenges,  shows. 

Many Paradise students still cope with anxiety and grief, seven years later, making it difficult to fully engage in school. A year after the Camp Fire, 17% of students were homeless, and the suspension rate was 7.4%, compared to 2.5% statewide. The suspension rate remained nearly triple the state average last year, and more than 26% were . 

Aryah Berkowitz, who lost her home, two dogs and her family鈥檚 business in the Paradise blaze, dealt with lingering behavioral challenges following the disaster. For nearly a year afterward, her family of seven, plus a pair of surviving pitbull-labrador mixes, lived with a friend in nearby Chico, sharing two bedrooms and a bathroom. Berkowitz, then in sixth grade, slept on the couch.

鈥淚 was having to help my family a lot and wasn鈥檛 able to handle it,鈥� said Berkowitz, a once-high-achieving student who was suspended twice after the fire. 鈥淚 was holding it inside and took it out on other people. Some days I鈥檇 just walk out of class.鈥�

Back on Maui, many students similarly disengaged from school.  In a DOE survey of Maui students in the first year after the fires, roughly half of kids said they were having trouble focusing in class or felt upset when they were reminded of the wildfires.   

Some have found it difficult to retain class material or simply stopped attending in-person classes as they moved between hotel rooms and temporary housing, according to Lahainaluna High teacher Jarrett Chapin. A few moved to online learning as their families faced continued instability. 

鈥淭hey just sort of vanished,鈥� Chapin said. 

A Shortage Of Specialists

Maui has long dealt with medical workforce challenges. Even before the fires, Maui faced a shortage of mental health professionals because of the state鈥檚 high cost of living and housing shortage.

The fires brought burnout and greater economic obstacles, only exacerbating the issue. Since then, Hawaii鈥檚 education department has tried to bulk up Maui鈥檚 mental health staff, first by bringing in providers from neighbor islands and the mainland and then by using a $2 million federal grant to support students鈥� well-being and academics. 

But hiring mental health staff has been so difficult that even the federal money hasn鈥檛 made much of a dent: In the first nine months of the grant, the state education department primarily used the money to  nearly an hour to Lahaina schools from other parts of the island.

The state has now used the money to hire five part-time mental health providers working with students and staff, including one specialist who works in the evenings with students who live on Lahainaluna鈥檚 campus as boarders, said Kimberly Lessard, a Department of Education district specialist.

Still, two of the six behavioral health specialist positions in Lahaina schools remained unfilled as of this summer and have been for years, Lessard said. 

Valdivia, who still deals with anxiety from the Upcountry Maui fires, has seen the impacts of the provider shortage firsthand. She鈥檚 on a two- to three-month waiting list to see a psychiatrist on Maui, and she鈥檚 seeing an O驶ahu-based therapist via telehealth because there aren鈥檛 enough providers who can meet with her in person. 

While she鈥檚 grateful to have connected with a therapist who can make their virtual meetings work, it鈥檚 frustrating to go through such a lengthy process to get help, Valdivia said. 

鈥淓ven just to get evaluated (by a psychiatrist), it鈥檚 literally months,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 just think that鈥檚 crazy.鈥�

It鈥檚 common for disaster-torn communities to struggle with shortages of psychological staff, often because of burnout and a lack of resources. 

In Puerto Rico, which has suffered from a series of disasters since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017, students have experienced high rates of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. 

Yet despite legislation in 2000 to create more school psychologist positions, it wasn鈥檛 until the pandemic that the commonwealth鈥檚 Education Department dedicated money to hire them. 

The school psychologists 鈥渃an鈥檛 keep up,鈥� said Nellie Zambrana, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Puerto Rico at R铆o Piedras. Those who are working are overstretched, according to a study by the university鈥檚 Psychological Research Institute. One psychologist, the study said, was assigned to more than 100 students at three schools. 

New Ways To Help

On a Tuesday afternoon in June, Loren Lapow wasn鈥檛 deterred by the storm clouds gathering over D.T. Fleming Beach on Maui. The social worker helped teens carry an inflatable paddleboard to the water鈥檚 edge, cheering them on as they swam. 

Amid the fun, Lapow directed the teens to reflect on their fears and losses, asking them how they feel when they smell smoke in the air or think about Lahaina鈥檚 Front Street, most of which was destroyed in the blaze. 

鈥淧laces are like a friend to us,鈥� Lapow said. 鈥淲hen you lose places, it hurts.鈥� 

Lapow founded the Maui Hero Project, which  describes as 鈥渁dventure-based counseling services.鈥� The eight-week program Lapow started just over 25 years ago teaches kids basic disaster preparedness skills and immerses them in outdoor activities. It鈥檚 also a form of mental health support. Healing from trauma comes in many forms, Lapow said, whether it鈥檚 helping kids create new friendships or leading small group discussions about the mental toll of the fires.  

鈥淲e need to create a culture of healing and resiliency,鈥� Lapow said.

Lapow鈥檚 approach has become a common strategy for nonprofits and therapists trying to reach kids who have balked at discussing their mental health since the fires. But those efforts aren鈥檛 always reaching kids who need the most help. 

There鈥檚 a strong stigma around seeking mental health services, particularly in Filipino and Latino communities that make up a large portion of Lahaina鈥檚 population, said Ruben Juarez, a professor at UH who led the research study on fire survivors. Families may see counseling as a sign of weakness, he said, and children may be reluctant to open up to therapists out of fear of being judged or scrutinized.

Yet in the study, Latino teens reported the highest rates of severe depressive and PTSD symptoms. Filipino teens reported some of the highest rates of anxiety. Similar cultural trends are seen in communities across the U.S.

Moving forward, Juarez said, kids鈥� mental health needs to be at the forefront of recovery plans. 

The state is hoping struggling students will open up to their peers.  A new Oregon-based program called YouthLine will train Hawai驶i teens to respond to crisis calls, said Keli Acquaro, the administrator for the Department of Health鈥檚 Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division. In addition to providing kids with real-time support from people their own age, Acquaro said, it will hopefully strengthen the pipeline of local students considering careers in mental health. 

Keakealani Cashman, who graduated from Kamehameha Schools Maui in 2024, is hoping to be part of the state鈥檚 solution to provide more mental health support to the next generation of children. 

After losing her home to the fires, Cashman spent her senior year talking to Native Hawaiian practitioners and researching how cultural values, like connections to the land and her ancestors, could help her community heal from the trauma of the fires. The project improved her own mental health, said Cashman, who regularly met with her school鈥檚 behavioral health specialist. 

Now, Cashman is entering her second year at Brigham Young University Hawaii and hopes to work as a behavioral health specialist in Hawaiian immersion schools.  

鈥淭his horrible, horrible thing happened to me and my family, but I don鈥檛 have to let it kill the rest of my life,鈥� Cashman said. 鈥淚 can really help my family, my community in school, and just make an impact in what I know how to do.鈥� 

Teacher retention and student safety are top of mind for West Maui families and school and union leaders as an academic year marked by deadly wildfires comes to a close. 

Since August, enrollment at Lahaina鈥檚 four public schools has dropped by roughly 1,000 students. Some families are still hesitant to return their children to the campuses next year, citing concerns around emergency preparedness and the mental health toll of attending classes near the burn zone.

In addition to a declining student population, the teachers鈥� union predicts that Lahaina schools may face greater challenges recruiting and retaining educators next year. Some teachers say the Hawaii Department of Education has failed to support its employees after the fires by not offering additional leave and flexibility for teachers who needed to find housing and move out of West Maui. 

Lahaina teachers are also asking for more counselors and mental health support for students next school year. 

The union is now mobilizing to push the superintendent and Hawaii Board of Education to fulfill educators鈥� requests, including pay raises for Lahaina teachers and expanded paid leave benefits.   

DOE had already designated Lahaina as a hard-to-staff location in 2020 due to the area鈥檚 high number of teacher vacancies and emergency hires. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 just incredibly stressful for so many people,鈥� said Jarrett Chapin, an English teacher at Lahainaluna High. 

Staffing Challenges

Even before the fires, hiring teachers in Lahaina was difficult, Chapin said. Housing was scarce, and the cost of living was high 鈥� even with the annual $5,000 bonus Lahaina teachers have received since 2020 due to severe staffing shortages in the area. 

The union has asked DOE to raise the annual bonus to $8,000 in response to the rising cost of living on Maui. The department said in March it would not fulfill the request, although superintendent Keith Hayashi said Thursday that it鈥檚 an option he鈥檚 now willing to consider. 

Hayashi added that the department has provided mental health support to students and teachers through staff trainings, partnerships with the Department of Health, online platforms and more. 

Earlier this month, the department was hiring for five teaching positions at Princess Nahienaena Elementary, King Kamehameha III Elementary and Lahainaluna High School. The department said funding for Lahaina schools will not drastically decline next year but did not specify if it will be hiring fewer teachers than usual because of reduced student enrollment. 

In Wailuku, Iao Intermediate is currently hiring seven teachers for next year, while Wailuku Elementary is hiring four teachers. Schools in other parts of Maui are facing similar hiring needs. 

Andrea Eshelman, deputy director and chief negotiator for HSTA, said she鈥檚 concerned more teachers will leave their jobs at the end of the year because of severe housing shortages in West Maui and DOE鈥檚 lackluster response to supporting faculty after the fires. HSTA previously asked DOE to provide post-disaster leave or mileage reimbursement to teachers who lost their homes in the fires and relocated from West Maui, but the department rejected the requests. 

In response, HSTA has begun a petition asking DOE to initiate a program that would allow teachers to donate their sick days to Maui teachers affected by the fires. As of Thursday, the petition received over 600 signatures from union members across the state, and over 20 teachers testified at Thursday鈥檚 BOE meeting asking the department to establish the leave bank and provide additional support for educators. 

The bank would allow Maui teachers to take paid time off to address the aftermath of the fires. 

During Thursday鈥檚 meeting, Lahainaluna teacher Michelle Abad Brummel said she lost her home in the fires and is temporarily living in South Maui. Her family spends nearly $500 each month on gas, and she鈥檚 resorted to using sick days to visit her home in the burn zone since DOE didn鈥檛 offer additional leave to teachers affected by the fires. 

鈥淭here will be one less good teacher in a school already in need,鈥� Abad Brummel said.

Ashley Olson, a teacher at Lahainaluna, said DOE should also provide more mental health support to staff and students. DOE has made crisis counseling and mental health providers available to Lahaina staff, but Olson said she would like professionals to consistently check in with teachers and proactively offer their help.

鈥淚鈥檓 pretty unimpressed with the progress we鈥檝e made,鈥� Olson said. 鈥淒o better by all of Maui.鈥�

BOE members agreed with teachers鈥� requests on Thursday and said they would offer more support in the next school year. 

鈥淲e heard you loud and clear,鈥� said board member Makana McClellan. 

Alternative Learning Options

Before the August fires, the four Lahaina public schools served around 3,000 students. Next year, their combined enrollment is expected to drop to roughly 2,000. 

In November, DOE estimated that most of the students who had not yet returned to Lahaina campuses had enrolled in other public schools on Maui. A smaller percentage of students had moved out of state or enrolled in Hawaii schools outside of the DOE. 

Rita McClintock, who lives in Kaanapali, has no plans to return her daughter to Lahaina Intermediate in the fall. In September, McClintock enrolled her daughter in Hawaii Technology Academy, a charter school that began offering hybrid classes in West Maui within a month of the fires.

The school initially offered instruction out of the Door of Faith Church in Lahaina but moved into the space formerly occupied by Kapalua鈥檚 Pineapple Grill restaurant in March.

McClintock said she believed DOE campuses had safe water and air quality after the Department of Health completed extensive testing on the schools in the fall. But she worried about whether DOE had adequate safety plans in place if another fire began near the schools. 

鈥淚 trusted the science, but I didn鈥檛 necessarily trust they had a plan in place if they got bad news,鈥� McClintock said. 

Now, McClintock said, she plans on keeping her daughter at HTA until eighth grade. She doesn鈥檛 want to disrupt her daughter鈥檚 education, she added, and she鈥檚 found a place that offers her family stability. 

Ginny Kamohalii-Dew, community coordinator for HTA鈥檚 Lahaina campus, said they expect approximately 60% of students to return to the school next year. Many families are moving out of West Maui, she added, and can no longer make the commute to campus. The school enrolls roughly 115 students. 

The charter school placed a strong emphasis on children鈥檚 mental health and recovery this year, she said, adding that she鈥檚 especially proud of students鈥� end-of-year projects that reimagined what Lahaina could look like once it鈥檚 fully rebuilt.  

鈥淚f our kids leave happy this year, we鈥檝e done enough,鈥� Kamohalii-Dew said. 

Other families are still unsure about their children鈥檚 futures. 

Before the fires, Miriam Keo鈥檚 two children attended the Hawaiian immersion program offered at Lahaina Intermediate. Since March, Lahaina鈥檚 Hawaiian immersion students have attended classes at the temporary campus for King Kamehameha III Elementary. 

The department hasn鈥檛 decided if Hawaiian immersion students can remain on the temporary campus next year, and Keo said she鈥檚 still considering her family鈥檚 options for next year. Like McClintock, she鈥檚 not convinced students would be able to evacuate safely during emergencies but wants her children to remain in the same school as their peers. 

鈥淚 just want to keep my keiki wherever the majority goes,鈥� Keo said.

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Val Kalahiki isn鈥檛 sure her students know what a fire alarm sounds like. In November 2019, Konawaena Elementary鈥檚 fire alarm system broke, and it hasn鈥檛 been replaced, said Kalahiki, who runs the after-school program at the Hawaii island school. 

In the case of a fire, the main office can use the loudspeaker system to inform students and teachers, Kalahiki said. But after the main office closes at 4:30 p.m., Kalahiki said she has to remain extra vigilant as she oversees 130 students who remain on campus for the after-school program. 

鈥淲here is the state putting all of our money if they can鈥檛 even protect our kids?鈥� Kalahiki said.

Her school is one of over two dozen that lacks a working fire alarm, according to Department of Education estimates.   

Concern for school fire safety has gained urgency following the Aug. 8 Maui wildfires that killed 99 people and destroyed more than 2,200 structures, including King Kamehameha III Elementary in Lahaina.

The state House Schools Working Group, formed in the aftermath of the Lahaina fires,  earlier this month finding some Hawaii schools 鈥渧ulnerable to fire.鈥� The  for better protecting students, from updating schools鈥� fire sprinkler systems to making evacuation plans more accessible to the public. 

Increased Urgency

But the problems long predated the Maui fires, with some schools waiting years to have broken fire alarm systems repaired. In a House education committee hearing in March, Department of Education deputy superintendent Curt Otaguro estimated that while 80% of Hawaii schools had working fire alarms, 12% had alarm systems in critical condition.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 just not acceptable,鈥� Otaguro said in the hearing.

DOE spokeswoman Nanea Kalani said the department now has 28 fire alarm systems needing repairs. Over 250 public schools fall under the DOE system.

Randall Tanaka, assistant superintendent for the office of facilities and operations, said DOE has made repairs to some systems since the spring, but larger repairs need more time since some require updates to schools鈥� electrical wiring systems.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a high priority for us,鈥� Tanaka said.

Many of Hawaii鈥檚 public schools .

鈥淎 significant number of school buildings in Hawaii lack modern fire suppression systems, such as automatic fire sprinklers and fire alarms, leaving them vulnerable in the event of a fire,鈥� the House Schools Working Group draft report said. 

The House has scheduled a  on the schools working group鈥檚 findings. A final report on that and other Maui-related topics is due Dec. 15. The DOE said it is still looking over the report but will submit testimony by Thursday.

Broken Systems, Delayed Repairs

County fire departments conduct inspections on schools every year. To pass these inspections, schools need to have working fire alarm systems, said Parrish Purdy, captain of the fire prevention bureau for Maui County.

DOE said 90% of its schools passed their fire inspections in the 2022-23 school year. 

But for schools with broken alarm systems, it can sometimes take years to receive replacements or repairs.

For example, as of 2017, the Department of Education acknowledged that King Intermediate School on Oahu had lacked a working fire alarm system for seven years.

If campuses have broken fire alarm systems, they must go on fire watch, said Kendall Ching, a captain with the Honolulu Fire Department. That means teachers and staff members are responsible for notifying the school鈥檚 administration and the fire department if they see signs of a potential blaze. 

There鈥檚 no time limit on how long a school can remain on fire watch, but it鈥檚 not meant to be a long-term solution, Purdy said.

In January 2021, fire watch protocols helped to keep an electrical fire from spreading on Konawaena Elementary鈥檚 campus. Second-grade teacher Anika Agerlie said she鈥檚 grateful a custodian was on campus and quickly alerted the school administration, but she worries what would have happened if the fire wasn鈥檛 caught early on. 

鈥淔our years is way too long to be on fire watch,鈥� Agerlie said. 鈥淥ne year is way too long鈥�

Legislative Action Planned

Rep. Jeanne Kapela represents District 5 on Hawaii island, which previously included Konawaena Elementary before redistricting. In the 2023 legislative session, she introduced and , which requested the DOE to submit a list of schools with broken fire alarms and a timeline for completing these repairs. 

The House Education Committee has not yet received the DOE鈥檚 list, Kapela said.

Kapela said she plans to introduce a bill next year providing funding to fix schools鈥� fire alarm systems. DOE said it would need to spend $10 million annually for the next five years to complete its repairs. 

鈥淭here鈥檚 no alternative to having a working fire alarm,鈥� Kapela said. 

Tanaka is unsure of the exact timeline for fixing schools鈥� fire alarm systems but said the DOE is constantly searching for solutions. He added that a shortage of companies who are able to fix schools鈥� fire alarm systems has contributed to delays.

Structural Changes

Since the August wildfires, DOE has focused on keeping the perimeters of schools safe and has worked with the Department of Transportation to cut down the grass and dry brush surrounding campuses such as Lahainaluna High, Tanaka said. He added that DOE is evaluating available emergency escape routes for schools, pointing to the  leading out of the Lahaina schools that DOT constructed last month.

He added that DOE continues to assess the fire preparedness of schools, particularly in fire-prone areas.

When it comes to building new schools or renovating old ones, the state is working with the National Council on School Facilities and the Environmental Protection Agency to ensure campuses have fire-safe infrastructures, said Keone Farias, executive director of the School Facilities Authority. For example, he said, the EPA鈥檚 guidance on what building materials are most fire-resistant will inform projects moving forward.

Farias said SFA hasn鈥檛 yet been involved in conversations around rebuilding King Kamehameha III鈥檚 permanent campus. But, he added, the agency will take all the precautions to protect the school when the time comes. 

鈥淲e鈥檒l build the safest school we possibly can,鈥� Farias said. 

Civil Beat鈥檚 education reporting is supported by a grant from Chamberlin Family Philanthropy.

The Hawaii Department of Education says the number of students listed as missing or killed in the Lahaina fire is so small that releasing it would violate their privacy.

This comes as the department announced it has been unable to make contact with nearly 500 families in its system more than a month after the disaster that killed at least 115 people and displaced thousands.

Education officials have faced a groundswell of anger following the Aug. 8 fire that razed entire blocks. At a meeting on Maui last month,  expressed concerns over plans to relocate students and the timing for reopening school campuses.

At a Board of Education meeting Thursday in Honolulu, parents lined up to call for more transparency about efforts to find children who have not yet re-enrolled in school.

Superintendent Keith Hayashi said the department knows the whereabouts and education plans of most of the some 3,000 students who had been enrolled in Lahaina before the fire.

He said 907 of them have enrolled in the state鈥檚 distance learning program and 782 have enrolled in other public schools. Nearly 345 students are now enrolled in charter schools, private schools or have withdrawn, he said. 

鈥淲e are actively reaching out to contact families for the remainder of students who have not yet enrolled in an option, knowing that some may have moved out of state or have paused their child鈥檚 education for the time being,鈥� he said.

Trying To Reach Families

After the meeting, DOE spokeswoman Nanea Kalani said the department has not heard back from 463 families that it has tried to call. There are 32 families that still have not been called as the department works its way down its list of phone numbers, she said. 

She also explained why the department has not released a number of those believed to have died or who remain missing. 鈥淔or students, we can鈥檛 release their identities or numbers right now because the n-size is so small. The n-size is too small, if we said it we鈥檇 be in effect identifying them,鈥� she said. N-size is a term used to describe a small subset of students.

Kalani pointed out that Maui County has a list with the names of people who are unaccounted for.

鈥淭he Maui Police Department is the lead on making those identifications,鈥� she said, 鈥渁nd then their privacy rests with their parents to disclose whether they were students.鈥�

Many attendees at the meeting called on the DOE to release more information and expressed concern about the well-being of children and families that have not been contacted.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of anxiety because the students aren鈥檛 being identified as safe or deceased,鈥� said Susan Pcola-Davis. 鈥淲hat I don鈥檛 understand is why. Why haven鈥檛 all the calls been made?鈥�

One child, 7-year-old Tony Takafua, has  on the official list of the deceased released by the Maui Police Department. On Thursday, the death toll remained at 115 with 60 individuals identified. Five of those individuals鈥� families have not yet been notified.

Fourteen-year-old Keyiro Fuentes was victim by his family, though he has not been officially identified by police. Loved ones have said he was an incoming junior at Lahainaluna High School. 

When asked by members of the board why the process of contacting all the families has taken so long, Deputy Superintendent Heidi Armstrong described a 鈥渃haotic鈥� situation in the immediate aftermath of the fires. 

Cellphone service and internet connections were down in Lahaina and surrounding areas. But she said Department of Education staff started 鈥渢aking action from the first week.鈥�

Reopening Plans

Staff members and school principals went to Red Cross shelters to try to identify families and students, she said. When shelters began closing and displaced people moved into hotels, school officials continued their searches there. 

Department employees are trying to call every family that hasn鈥檛 been contacted in person, but sometimes calls aren鈥檛 answered or returned, and in some cases voicemail boxes are full or nonexistent, making it impossible to leave a message, she said.

King Kamehameha III Elementary School was destroyed and the three other public schools in town, Princess Nahi鈥榚na鈥榚na, Lahaina Intermediate and Lahainaluna High, are closed. 

Lahainaluna High students will go to school temporarily at Kulanihako驶i High in Kihei beginning Sept. 14, according to the department. Students have  from West Maui.

Hayashi said he hopes to reopen the three Lahaina schools that weren鈥檛 destroyed 鈥渁s soon as safely possible鈥� and is aiming for sometime after fall break, which takes place Oct. 9-13. 

The department is working with contractors to conduct soil sampling around the school and evaluate the water quality, and the Department of Health has installed air quality sensors at the three campuses, he said. Professional services will also clean the schools and school officials will revise evacuation plans before schools reopen, he said.

Hayashi said the department had facilitated a 24/7 mental health hotline through the Hawaii Medical Service Association and made therapists available in schools and at community centers in Lahaina and Wailuku. 

Sites around West Maui, including churches and hotels, are being considered to serve as temporary classroom sites, and the state has plans to open in-person distance learning hubs for certain students, including those with special education needs and those in the Hawaiian language immersion program. Those hubs would also provide meals and mental health services, he said. 

Enoka-Shayne Bingo told department officials during the meeting that community members want to be more involved in the recovery process. 

鈥淟et the village of all of these islands help,鈥� he said. 鈥淟et us through this red tape, because we are all suffering with Lahaina.鈥�

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