[S37] Lessons learned from Hawai‘i wildfire and the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami
Conference Bldg 3F - Shirakashi Conference Hall
| Organizer | University of Hawaii |
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Outline
The August 2023 Maui, Hawaii wildfire, which burned approximately 2,200 homes and killed 102 people, was exacerbated by high winds that sparked multiple fires just after midnight on August 8, 2023, especially in Lahaina, where wind gusts reached 60 mph, dry summer conditions, low humidity, and Hurricane High winds caused by Dora exacerbated the fires. Such a disaster was especially devastating economically for Hawaii, where tourism is a major industry. Disasters in this region, which attracts many tourists, have affected confidence in the tourism industry, and long-term recovery is needed. In 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake struck Japan, leaving more than 18,000 people dead or missing, mainly due to the tsunami. More than a decade later, infrastructure and other reconstruction efforts appear to be nearly complete, but the recovery of people's lives is still a long way off. This experience has underscored the importance of early evacuation in order to protect lives from future disasters. Furthermore, this disaster is said to be a multiple/cascading disaster of an earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear power plant accident, so it is necessary to consider how to respond to and tackle this unprecedented disaster. Hawaii will be engaged in a long-term recovery, but what can we learn from the Great East Japan Earthquake in the process? In this session, we will share the challenges of Hawaii's wildfire response, recovery, and future disaster management, and discuss what we can learn from the Great East Japan Earthquake experience in order to solve these challenges and promote recovery.
