He is a fourth-generation kamaaina born on Oahu who earned a journalism degree from the University of Hawaii. Gomes has been a reporter for local newspapers since the mid-1990s. He regularly enjoys surfing, bodysurfing and skateboarding.
Hawaii has an updated plan to reduce disaster hazard risks statewide, though it was almost entirely produced before the Aug. 8 Maui wildfire that killed at least 99 people and destroyed Lahaina town. Read more
For the first time since a wildfire leveled most of Lahaina town nearly three months ago, members of the intertwined Kahahane and Dizon families reunited Friday with neighbors, fond memories and a departed relative inside their seaside Mala neighborhood that was reduced largely to ash. Read more
A memorial for fire victims could also be part of what is developed on the site, recognizing that ash might contain some elements of human remains from the Aug. 8 wildfire, which killed at least 99 people. Read more
A Maui nonprofit administering the new $100 million program for the state received about 600 applications since Friday when the program opened, and was overwhelmed during a Tuesday application outreach event at an American Red Cross disaster assistance center in Lahaina. Read more
West Maui tourism is set to fully reopen Nov. 1 after the deadly Aug. 8 wildfire that destroyed most of Lahaina, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen announced Monday. Read more
According to a 2018-19 assessment by the Hawai‘i Wildfire Management Organization, about 350 miles of landscape alteration statewide was needed to reduce high wildfire risk — a distance encircling Oahu about 2-1/2 times Read more
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Initial unemployment claims on Maui began to spike in August, and remain high. Read more
The eighth-floor penthouse, featuring 5,668 square feet of interior living space, including four bedrooms and 4-1/2 bathrooms, sold Thursday. Read more
A big piece of a more than 20-year-old community dream to reuse part of the former Aiea Sugar Mill site on Oahu has begun to take physical shape. Read more
Test results of ash from burned homes in Upcountry Maui show three toxic substances above safe levels, including an extreme amount of arsenic. Read more
Tiny-home villages have been popular as emergency housing in Hawaii, but Maude Cumming is pursuing a bigger idea to temporarily re-house many Lahaina residents displaced by the Aug. 8 wildfire that destroyed the West Maui town. Read more
Hawaii won’t be a clean-hydrogen production and distribution hub under a $7 billion federal initiative. Read more
The company, in its wildfire mitigation plan produced in January and filed with the PUC Oct. 2, said it took up a proactive approach to such risk based on devastating California wildfires in 2018 and its own wildfire experiences in 2019. Read more
A new pop-up homeless shelter on Maui with air- conditioned group tents, free meals, health services and planned movie nights has drawn considerable use a week after opening to serve people who were homeless in Lahaina before the town was leveled Aug. 8 by fire. Read more
Their experience may not be typical given divisions in the local community that include people who lost their homes and family members in the runaway fire and depend on tourism for employment. Read more
Participants from keiki to kupuna filled about a dozen picnic tables and conveyed messages that included “Stand Together,” “Stronger Aloha,” “Lahaina Strong,” “Malama Lahaina” and “Keep Lahaina Lands in Lahaina Hands.” Read more
Handmade leather sandal craftsman Michael Mahnensmith, 80, was confirmed Thursday as a victim who died in the Aug. 8 Lahaina wildfire, according to the Maui Police Department. Read more
Nearly two months after the deadly Maui wildfires, Hawaiian Electric revealed the limited scope of insurance coverage it holds in the face of potentially billions of dollars in damage claims. Read more
Hawaii residents sharing their homes with people displaced eight weeks ago by Maui wildfires stand to receive some help themselves financially. Read more
Under the program, hosts sharing their homes can apply to receive $375 a month for every fire survivor living with them, up to $1,500. Read more
Hawaii emergency warning sirens were tested Monday for the first time since the deadly Aug. 8 Lahaina fire, on the same day disaster relief and recovery program changes took place on Maui as well. Read more
