Plaintiffs in Maui wildfire case reach $4 billion settlement against Hawaiian Electric and others
Under the settlement, which must still be approved by the court, “the seven defendants will pay $4.037 billion to provide compensation to all those who have brought claims for compensation arising from the Aug. 8, 2023 windstorms and wildfires on Maui, including the approximately 2,200 affected parties who filed lawsuits,” according to a news release from Hawaii Gov. Josh Green’s office.
The defendants include the state of Hawai‘i, County of Maui, Hawaiian Electric, Kamehameha Schools, West Maui Land Co., Hawaiian Telcom and Spectrum/Charter Communications, according to the release.
The Hawaiian wildfires last August burned over 2,000 acres in Lahaina, and hundreds of acres in Kula and Olinda, on the island of Maui. The resulting destruction of homes, businesses and infrastructure, along with the loss of tourism may have resulted in up to $6 billion in economic losses, according to an estimate from Moody’s RMS. The fires killed more than 100 people.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The defendants agreed to pay billions to compensate for the losses caused by the windstorms and wildfires, mainly affecting businesses and residences. This considerable payment could potentially help Maui's economy recover from the substantial economic losses.
