Hawaiʻi Gov. Josh Green on Saturday signed a formal request asking the White House to issue a presidential emergency declaration for Hawaiʻi following Hurricane Lala.
The state’s U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono as well as its U.S. Reps. Ed Case and Jill Tokuda, all Democrats, also released as statement of support for Green’s request, urging its swift approval by the White House.
Green’s official request covers Hawaiʻi County, Maui County and City and County of Honolulu.
It seeks immediate federal assistance to protect public health and safety as well as maintain essential services and support communities still recovering.
“Hurricane Lala caused severe damage across our state and placed an extraordinary strain on communities already recovering from previous disasters,” said Green in a release from his office.
He has been in direct contact with the White House and officials of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet including U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, to advocate for the urgent assistance Hawaiʻi needs.
“We are asking for specialized federal resources to protect our communities, care for our people and keep essential services operating while another storm approaches,” the governor said.
Lala brought about 20 to 40 inches of rain to some areas, triggering severe flooding, runoff and landslides. Initial reports indicate that hundreds of homes were damaged or destroyed and roads and bridges damaged or washed out.
Rural Kaʻū on the Big Island experienced some of the most and worst impacts.
Flooding and infrastructure damage disrupted access along Hawaiʻi Belt Road, the primary highway serving the region, while extended power and communications outages affected water systems, medical access and emergency operations.
Severe slope failure at Nāʻālehu Cemetery also disinterred human remains, creating an urgent cultural, public health and operational challenge that requires specialized mortuary resources.
At the height of the storm, about 200,000 customers throughout Hawaiʻi Island, Maui and Oʻahu lost power. Although service has largely been restored on Maui and Oʻahu, many Hawaiʻi Island customers remained without electricity when the request was submitted.
In some of the most severely affected areas, restoration could extend through Sept. 8.
Heavy rain, high winds, flooding, debris, power outages and communications disruptions on Oʻahu also affected transportation, essential services and public safety operations.
The state is requesting federal Public Assistance Category B emergency protective measures and Direct Federal Assistance, including:
- Deployment of Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team personnel and other specialists to assist with the recovery, identification, documentation and reinterment of human remains.
- Large-capacity emergency generators and federal technical and logistical support for critical facilities and essential services.
- Federal experts and equipment to establish microgrids or comparable interim power systems until permanent electrical service is restored.
Green’s request also notes that state and county personnel have conducted search-and-rescue operations, opened shelters, cleared debris, restored emergency access, assessed infrastructure and coordinated with nonprofit, utility and private-sector partners.
Meanwhile, Hawaiʻi continues recovery efforts related to the kona low storms in March and magnitude-6.0 earthquake that struck the Kona region in May.
Those successive disasters, combined with Lala and this weekend’s Tropical Storm Moke, place additional demands on state and county personnel, equipment and financial resources.
“An emergency declaration is critical to ensuring Hawaiʻi has the federal resources it needs to continue recovering from Hurricane Lala,” said the statement from Hawaiʻi’s congressional delegation in Washington. “On Hawaiʻi Island, communities are still experiencing power outages and damaged infrastructure while local resources continue to be stretched thin by the recovery effort. Additional emergency federal support will help the state and counties immediately restore essential services, clear debris, repair critical roads and support people affected by the hurricane.”
With Moke threatening as they crafted their statement, the lawmakers said it is especially important the recovery efforts continue without delay.
“We urge swift approval of Gov. Green’s request for an emergency declaration and the additional federal assistance it will provide,” their statement said.
