Former MFD chief warns focus in Lahaina disaster should be on prevention, not finger-pointing

LAHAINA (HawaiiNewsNow) - A retired Maui fire commander is defending the leaders who were in charge on Aug. 8, saying the Lahaina disaster was unprecedented — and unpredictable.

Amos Lonokailua-Hewett believes there is nothing anyone could have done differently on that day to change the outcome of what is now the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history.

However, the former battalion chief says there are definitely preventative measures that could’ve been taken years, months, even weeks prior to that horrific day.

Lonokailua-Hewett retired from the Maui Fire Department in 2019 after 25 years of service. He was the incident commander in 2018 when wind-whipped flames by Hurricane Lane scorched 22 homes and severely burned a woman. However, no lives were lost and Lahaina was saved.

“In 2018, I was this close — numerous times in the evening — to losing it all,” he recalled.

Special Section: Maui Wildfires Disaster

While many compare the 2018 fire to the 2023 fire, Lonokailua-Hewett says the two have very little in common. For example, the timeline. The “Lane Fire” broke out around 1 a.m. The 2023 “Dora Fire” sparked around 6:40 a.m., was contained and then reignited in the afternoon.

“The landscape is hot. All of the fields are preheated, including the structures, which makes it readily ignitable,” said Lonokailua-Hewett. “And that’s a really, really, really big difference.”

He said another difference is location.

The 2018 “Lane Fire” broke out in Kauaula Valley in the mountains above Lahaina whereas the “Dora Fire” started off Lahainaluna Road, in the middle of Lahaina.

Lonokailua-Hewett said in 2018, he had time to organized resources to protect different areas.

But that wasn’t the case in 2023.

“There is no time to organize,” he said.

The former commander added the winds were also stronger in the Dora fire, which he says is evident by the number of power poles that were downed.

Critics have questioned the government’s response to the disaster, noting that key personnel weren’t in Maui’s Emergency Operations Center on the day of the blaze, communications broke down, and Lahaina residents were given little or no time to evacuate.

But Lonokailua-Hewett believes nothing could have been done that day to change the outcome.

“Leadership of 2023, the officers on the ground doing their best to save Lahaina … those are the same heroes that helped me in 2018,” he said.

Questions still remain: What would have saved the beloved town of Lahaina and all the lives that were lost? How can Maui County officials prevent this from ever happening again?

Lonokailua-Hewett says you have to know the past to understand the present and to change the future. “The Kaua’ula winds come to my mind,” he said.

Literature tells us the Kaua’ula Wind is famous for its power — clocked at 120 miles an hour, coming from Iao Valley, down Kaua’ula Valley and known to tear down everything in its path.

So, what has prevented deadly and devastating firestorms from happening in the past?

“Lahainaluna, the alma mater, it talks about Malu’ulu o Lele, which means that this is a place where there were ‘ulu groves,” Lonokailua-Hewett said.

“That’s protection for sure, which means that there also was water. The Alma Mater also says ua kilikilihune Hoʻopulu i ke oho o ka palai, which means the sprinkling rain that used to dampen the fronds of the palai. Those are examples of water being present here.”

For over a century, water was diverted to irrigate the plantations in Lahaina. The fight over water in West Maui continues today. Lonokailua-Hewett says if nothing is done, history will repeat itself.

“The winds will come back. This town will always be hot,” he said.

“There’s always going to be potential for fire. So, unless we do something about the surrounding areas around our community … the devastation will return.”

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