Hawaii has become closely acquainted with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) since last August, when the agency shouldered a key role in relief and recovery after the disastrous Lahaina wildfire. The agency, which responds to disasters including fires, flood and hurricanes nationwide, expects to ultimately spend approximately $3 billion — that’s about 10% of its 2023 budget — to aid Maui with wildfire recovery, funding housing payments, debris removal and disposal, and infrastructure repairs.

FEMA clearly has a stake in encouraging disaster preparedness, which can save lives and limit damages to property and the environment.

Properly, FEMA is concentrating its National Preparedness Month campaign, underway now, on people in Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities. The focus on AANHPI people and communities is overdue, as past lapses have left people in these groups underprepared and more vulnerable to harm.

A foundation of the campaign comes from findings in FEMA’s annual National Household Survey on Disaster Preparedness, conducted since 2013 to gauge national readiness, “attitudes” and “motivations.” Last year, its survey found that a startling 65% of Asian Americans and 58% of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the United States do not believe that preparing for an emergency makes a difference — a belief that contradicts real-world findings and exposes AANHPI people to unnecessary risks. (The national average is 50%.)

The vital objective, then, is to use readiness outreach to get AANHPI people and communities the information and resources needed to prepare and build resiliency before disaster strikes.

On Aug. 29, 2023, just three weeks after the Lahaina fire, FEMA joined with the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans to announce the campaign theme, “Start a Conversation,” with the intent of getting people plugged in to preparedness information and AANHPI communities to share these strategies.

A starting point for these important conversations can be found with the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA), at dod.hawaii.gov/hiema. HI-EMA offers updates specific to the islands on potential hazards such as hurricanes, with alerts on their strength and paths, and “red flag” warnings for fire danger in specific regions, available in several languages, including Japanese, Ilocano and Marshallese.

HI-EMA and other state agencies including Hawaii’s Department of Health are participating in the “Start a Conversation” campaign, with materials emphasizing islanders’ concerns such as hurricanes and tsunami awareness — and now, wildfire safety.

FEMA’s 2023 survey revealed extremely high hurricane awareness — 96% — for those in risky areas, and that’s good. But a far smaller proportion — 49% — of those at similar high risk of wildfire emergency were aware. This lack of awareness and preparation can have deadly consequences, as Hawaii now knows all too well, and must be reversed.

Further, there was a 10% drop in sign-ups for alerts and warnings nationwide between 2022 and 2023, sinking to 36%. Access and opt-ins to alerts do matter, and the renewed attention now paid to updating Hawaii’s warning sirens and other disaster-proof methods of providing alerts must be continued.

Both HI-EMA and Ready.gov offer preparedness information and tips specific to hazards. Ready.gov has a family emergency plan that can be downloaded, and preparedness toolkits in 10 languages. But unless people in at-risk communities receive direct information about how to prepare, they are five times less likely to do so. Throughout the state, Hawaii’s emergency managers must focus preparedness outreach on communities where awareness can be increased, tailoring efforts to a community’s specific risks and needs — and languages.