County, state emergency management teams to conduct site visits to properties damaged in South Kona quake

Hawai‘i County Civil Defense Agency, along with the Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency, will be conducting site visits to properties damaged in the May 22, 2026, 6.0-magnitude earthquake in South Kona.

The joint preliminary damage assessment starts Tuesday and will continue through Thursday, June 4. This assessment will serve as the basis for requesting state and federal assistance.

Hawai‘i County Civil Defense Administrator Talmadge Magno said last week that more than 300 damage reports were submitted to the county. Seven homes collapsed in the quake.

“If you submitted a damage report to Civil Defense, we will make every effort to contact you before we visit your property,” county officials stated Monday.

There are nearly 90 cases of significant damage to properties, with 50 reports of impacts to water systems, Magno said.

Nearly a week after the earthquake, about 100 other South Kona residents attended a community meeting at the Sgt. Rodney J.T. Yano Memorial Hall in Captain Cook, where Hawai‘i County department heads answered questions about the recovery process and walked them through filing damage reports.

Hawai‘i County Mayor Kimo Alameda signed an emergency proclamation on May 27 related to the earthquake.

Some residents at that meeting told Big Island Now the quake caused several thousand dollars of damage, ranging from collapsed retaining walls to compromised home foundations to damaged catchment water systems.

Following the meeting, Magno said many catchment systems that hold water either failed or are broken in some way, whether it’s pipes, liners, or an entire tank.

To address the water needs of residents, the county Parks and Recreation Department will keep the gates at the Hōnaunau Rodeo Arena unlocked from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. seven days a week to ensure access to water spigots.

Magno anticipates submitting the assessment to the Federal Emergency Management Agency by the end of the week or early next week.