Missive to Maui County: It is the county’s duty and responsibility to push forward and release details of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) report revealing conclusions about the cause or causes of the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires in Lahaina and Upcountry Maui.

On that date, fire magnified to deadly strength and speed by winds whipping down the slopes above Lahaina destroyed much of the historic town, killing 102 people and leaving thousands without homes.

Maui County and the state are relying on an official fact-finding and determination as to the fire’s “cause and origin” from the ATF, which has done its work and reported its findings to the county. However, Maui County has not set a timetable for releasing an official report, and says it needs to incorporate the ATF findings into its own report as the reason for still withholding the information.

The slow-rolling of such a vital report, however, is unacceptable.

Our public officials must be expected to reveal truths promptly — especially over such a horrific, large-scale disaster as Lahaina — not conceal or delay the facts unturned. Maui County’s public obligation to transparency requires that the ATF’s report be disclosed now.

In June, federal ATF officials visited Maui to transmit the contents of the fire’s cause and origin report to local officials and to answer questions on the findings. In the midst of a flurry of news organizations’ requests for the report, however, on July 10, Maui’s Department of Fire and Public Safety (DFPS) and the ATF released a joint statement that the ATF was “still in the process of completing its report,” and “additional formatting” was required. That was over a month ago.

As reported by Star-Advertiser writer Peter Boylan last week, Maui DFPS says the public should stay tuned for a news conference to be called so that the findings can be made public. The ATF’s findings will be attached as an addendum to Maui’s final origin-and-cause report, the county states.

But given the extent of this fire disaster, which has caused billions of dollars worth of damage and displaced an entire population center, Maui County must employ a greater sense of urgency to provide answers to fire victims and survivors. Further, the county must be pressed for disclosure given its inaction after the earlier, 2018 Lahaina fire: the Maui Emergency Management Agency buried a crucial “after-action” report of that fire, which had destroyed 21 houses and more than two dozen vehicles; the report was finally released in October, after a public-records request.

The delay in releasing information creates a vacuum that allows for misinformation or misguided conclusions to metastasize. Fire survivors have speculated that the current Maui/ATF report is being suppressed because its revelations would hamper acceptance of a $4 billion global settlement of fire-related lawsuits that the state and county seek. Maui County’s lag in releasing details from the report only encourages skepticism and mistrust of government.

The information’s value to disaster preparation and prevention is arguably more important than its importance to parceling out liability in this case, precisely because the state, led by Gov. Josh Green, has pursued a swifter, more mediated settlement. It starts from the vantage point of determining the highest contributions that Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO), the likely most-liable party, can afford without facing dissolution, and that other parties can contribute without damaging the state further.

Assigning accountability for the disaster is necessary to prevent a similar disaster from developing again. The ATF report is fundamental to this. Knowing the tragic risks of failing to address such a threat, as we now do, the public deserves immediate disclosure and follow-up improvements.