Hawaiʻi congressional delegation urge approval for disaster declaration request

To ensure communities can access important federal funding and resources for recovery, Gov. Josh Green has requested a presidential disaster declaration following a 6.0 earthquake on Hawaiʻi Island.

The powerful earthquake struck the western side of Hawaiʻi Island on the evening of May 22, centered near the Hōnaunau-Nāpōʻopoʻo area. The initial seismic shock damaged local roadways, triggered multiple rockslides that blocked the highway, and caused widespread power outages for roughly 1,330 utility customers and commercial agricultural operations.

U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie K. Hirono, along with U.S. Reps. Ed Case and Jill Tokuda, have urged President Donald Trump to act swiftly on Green’s request for a presidential disaster declaration for areas affected by the earthquake.

The delegation wrote a letter to the president, asking him to expedite all possible federal assistance to help the state recover from the earthquake’s impacts, specifically pointing to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program.

“It is difficult to overstate the stress that the earthquake has placed on this community, where approximately 20 percent of the population lives at or below the poverty line, and roughly 20 percent of the general population reports having a disability,” the delegation wrote. “State and county governments are also stretched to their capacities by the successive disasters the state has faced since 2018.”

According to the letter, state and local governments received reports of damages to 548 homes on Hawaiʻi Island. The Joint Preliminary Damage Assessment evaluated 313 of these properties and determined that 110 homes either sustained major structural damage or were completely destroyed.

It was also determined that 105 homes suffered the total loss of water catchment systems, creating a health and safety hazard for residents and potentially the broader community.

The letter stated that only 5.2% of the 548 homes have standard homeowner’s policies and only two homes had earthquake insurance due to the high cost in the volcanically active region.

The delegation asked for a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for the state of Hawaiʻi, authorization to activate the Individual Assistance Program for Hawaiʻi County, and authorization of the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.

Full text of the letter is available online.