6 months after wildfires, FEMA administrator praises survivors for ‘resolve’

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Federal leaders are on Maui this week marking six months since the wildfire disaster.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell says the people of Maui have been through one of the worst disasters in our nation’s history.

“The federal government, the entire federal family is going to be here with you through the end of your recovery,” she said.

Criswell calls their resilience, resolve, and perseverance “remarkable.”

Maui Wildfires Disaster

She also says their consideration of community throughout the recovery process should act as a model for future operations.

To date, FEMA has secured nearly 1,500 leased properties for survivors and more than 160 households have moved into temporary housing through FEMA’s Direct Lease program.

Some residents say some landlords are not renewing their current tenants’ leases because they can get more money from FEMA for housing fire survivors.

“We’re working really closely with the mayor and the governor, their teams to get a better understanding of what the overall impact is. So we want to make sure that we are providing that level of navigation and case management to every individual or family,” Criswell said.

Any landlord who is not renewing their tenants’ leases to receive more federal funding will be disqualified from the program and reported to the state Attorney General.

In the meantime, the Small Business Administration has directed more than $290 million in loans to small business owners, nonprofits, homeowners and renters seeking to rebuild.

“The president is really committed to making sure that we take all the actions necessary to empower the community of maui to rebuild and recover how they are envision it,” said Small Business Administration Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman.

Guzman said the agency knows there is still a long road ahead to economic recovery ... but it’s committed to helping Maui residents for “as long as it takes.”

“This is going to be a long-term so we need to be flexible in the federal government and that’s exactly what President Biden asked us to be. So we’ve tried to change our program and make sure that small businesses and residents have as much time as possible to rebuild,” she said.

Friday was the last day to register for individual FEMA assistance.

For more information, go to disasterassistance.gov.