Top headlines from across Hawaiʻi

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Statewide

Hawaiʻi’s weather and recovery picture remains front and center as Tropical Storm Moke is expected to bring rain and gusty winds to parts of the state, while officials continue to deal with the damage left by Hurricane Lala across the Big Island and beyond. Recovery work is still active, with state transportation crews clearing streams and hillsides and county and health partners keeping services moving in hard-hit communities. On the Big Island, flooding concerns are rising again in areas already battered by Lala, while disaster-request planning is moving ahead statewide. At the same time, Maui County is weighing longer-term water supply fixes and housing moves tied to the Kīlohana modular units, showing how storm response and basic infrastructure needs are still shaping the agenda.

Maui

Maui’s biggest local threads are water and housing, with county leaders considering costly desalination options as demand grows and FEMA’s Kīlohana modular units moving toward permanent housing use. The island is also tracking the broader storm pattern, including Moke’s approach and the state transportation response, while Hawaiian Volcano Observatory field technicians are getting a public nod in the latest Volcano Watch update.

Big Island

The Big Island remains in recovery mode after Lala, with Hawaiʻi Island Community Health Center bringing mobile care back to Nā‘ālehu and insurance claim assistance centers set to expand next week. At the same time, more than 10,000 Hawaiian Electric customers are still waiting for answers after a week without power, underscoring how slow the restoration remains. Weather is adding pressure again, with Moke forecast to pass south of the island and a wind advisory in effect for parts of the island.

Kauaʻi

Kauaʻi is watching Tropical Storm Moke closely, with forecasters still calling for possible rain even as the system passes south of the islands. The island is also carrying the wider Lala recovery story through the push for a federal disaster declaration and the scale of the storm’s rainfall, which was detailed in a separate report on the 1.9 million Olympic-size swimming pools of water. Beyond weather and recovery, Kauaʻi also has local community and civic coverage, from the 2026 Trashion Show and a new Harvest Dinner series to the upcoming mayoral debate.

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