In Hawaii, there is another billion-dollar catastrophe, which according to experts means a serious blow to the state’s economy

Wildfires are likely to deal a serious blow to Hawaii’s economy

Meteorologist and CEO of Meteomatics North America Paul Walsh joined FOX Weather on Sunday to explain how Hawaii’s devastating wildfires will deal a devastating blow to the state’s economy just as it begins to recover from the pandemic.

In addition to personal losses and the loss of Hawaiian culture and history, experts say the recent wildfires in Hawaii have also dealt a blow to Maui’s economy, tourism.

“Tourism actually makes up the lion’s share of the economy there. It’s the second most visited island in Hawaii,” Paul Walsh, meteorologist and CEO of Meteomatics for weather and climate analysis, told FOX Weather. “They estimated that about a million and a half people visited Maui in the first half of this year alone.”

He said that number was up 6% from a year earlier.

“So they were just beginning to see the benefits of recovering from COVID,” he continued.

The Hawaii fire death toll is 93 and expected to rise, making it the deadliest wildfire in the US in over 100 years

This is the burned view of Front Street in Lahaina, which used to be full of shops and restaurants. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Tourism employs about 75% of Maui

The largest employment sector on Maui is tourism-oriented businesses, reports the Maui Economic Development Board. The tourism industry accounts for approximately 75% of all private sector jobs on Maui.

The fires not only destroyed hotels, restaurants and shops for tourists, but also destroyed houses. These are homes where construction workers and engineers lived and are essential to the rebuilding of cities like Lahaina.

Gov. Josh Green has asked surviving hotels and airbnbs to accommodate the homeless. Lahaina officials report that more than 5,000 buildings were destroyed, nearly 90% of which were homes. FOX News reports about 4,500 people need shelter. That costs tourists even more money.

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FILE: The family, who slept on the floor at Kahului Airport, exited the hotel they were staying at, although it was not damaged. After two days without food and electricity, they felt more comfortable at the airport while waiting for a flight to depart. (Mengshin Lin for The Washington Post/Getty Images)

Additionally, the Hawaii Tourism Authority has asked all non-essential visitors to leave the island and postponed all tourists planning to visit.

According to the University of Hawaii, before COVID-19, tourism accounted for a quarter of the state’s economy. In 2019, visitors spent around $17.8 billion.

Another billion dollar catastrophe

Losses to date total nearly $6 billion, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said at a news conference.

“If we count this event, we’ll be in on $16 billion worth of events this year, compared to an annual average of six using the 1980 average,” Walsh said. “We are currently tied with the 2020 record for most records.”

2021 ranked second for the highest number of weather disasters worth billions on record

As of July, NOAA counted $15 billion worth of weather and climate disasters.
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As of August 8, 2023, NOAA has estimated the CPI-adjusted cost of disasters to be in the billions of dollars per year
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“And we’re not even really at the peak of fire season here in the US, and of course we haven’t even started hurricane season in earnest,” Walsh said. “So it could be a long second half of the year if we’re talking about events like this.”

reconstruction

Walsh said he has no doubt Maui will rebuild and eventually thrive. Buildings and infrastructure are protected against forest fires. The technology will continue to improve computer models for firestorm forecasting, surveillance and public warning.

“So there’s a long-term silver lining, but that’s going to be many years to come,” Walsh said. “And in the short term, it’s just tragic.”