Hawaii Wildfire Response Assessments and Reporting

The 2023 Hawaii wildfires devastated large swathes of the state’s landscape, particularly on the islands of Maui and Hawaii. Dry conditions and strong winds fueled fast-spreading fires, destroying homes, displacing communities, and causing damage to habitats and farmland.
 
Emergency responders battled for weeks to contain the blazes, which ultimately charred thousands of acres of pristine forests and endangered ecosystems. The aftermath left a lasting impact on Hawaii’s environment, economy, and community resilience, highlighting the increasing threat of wildfires in the face of climate change.
 
The wind-driven wildfires left more than 2,000 properties damaged or destroyed. Working alongside Native Hawaiian organization Dawson, Forgen’s experience with disaster relief execution and management enabled our team and sister company DRC to offer a safe and timely response to local communities in Lahaina, Olinda, and Kula in Maui, Hawaii.

Forgen and DRC quickly organized and engaged our subject matter experts and key partners to assist Dawson with the development of project specific work plans and information collection tools to efficiently produce comprehensive hazard site assessments for each property affected by the fire.   The scope of the assessment work included providing detailed property debris and hazard assessments, hazard tree identification and marking, and bulk asbestos containing material sampling and identification.   

Following work plan and tool establishment, Forgen personnel filled key operational roles required to lead the information collection effort, directing teams of field resources to complete and capture the information for the previously described assessments. Additionally, Forgen personnel filled senior quality control and health & safety roles.  We conducted comprehensive air monitoring and executed a surveillance plan to monitor and protect crews within hazard assessment properties.

Together, our teams completed the assessments of nearly 1,600 properties over 90 days, working 7 days a week. The data collected was used to determine the level of effort required to clean each property in the next phase.

Early contractor involvement on this project enabled our team to collaboratively develop the key work plans and project specific GIS tools that proved invaluable to the process.  Furthermore, early engagement helped to establish close working relationships among all the team members prior to field implementation leading to efficient, safety focused assessment execution in a professional and empathetic manner appropriate to the scope and scale of the disaster to meet project objectives.

Collecting data to determine the level of effort required for cleaning each property during this wildfire recovery initiative was crucial for effective subsequent cleanup efforts. This data allows for targeted resource allocation, prioritization of tasks, and efficient deployment of personnel and equipment.

By understanding the specific hazards and contamination levels at each site, cleanup crews are able to tailor their approach, conducting thorough remediation while minimizing environmental impact. This systematic approach enhanced overall cleanup efficiency, sped up recovery efforts, and helped restore affected areas to a safe and habitable state more swiftly.

This initial phase of work allowed for further cleanup efforts to begin in the impacted areas, including removing hazardous debris and supporting affected communities. Environmental remediation teams in Hawaii are restoring habitats and implementing erosion control measures, while infrastructure repairs are underway to facilitate recovery and ensure community resilience. Long-term planning focuses on enhancing disaster preparedness and mitigating future wildfire risks, reflecting a coordinated approach to address the widespread impact and restore affected areas to a safe and habitable state.