Rich investors exposed for trying to get Lahaina wildfire victims to sell land amid disaster

The fires in Maui, Hawaii haven’t been contained yet, but already residents of Lahaina are worried investors will try to capitalise on the disaster for land development.

The wildfires that ravaged Maui last week left a scar on towns like Lahaina, where 80 per cent of the structures in town have been damaged or destroyed.

Hawaii governor Josh Green estimated that the state has lost an estimated $5.6bn and it could cost that just to rebuild Maui.

But while thousands of people living on the islands are trying to recover and find shelter, investors see an opportunity.

In a video posted to Instagram, a member of the nonprofit organisation Kāko’o Haleakalā claimed land investors were already calling Lahaina residents who lost their homes, offering to buy their land.

“I am so frustrated with inventors and realtors calling the families who lost their home offering to buy their land,” the person in the video says.

“How dare you do that to our community right now.”

It is unclear which investors or relators the person in Kāko’o Haleakalā’s video was speaking about.

One resident, Mark Stefl, told USA Today he was approached by developers to buy his land but that he refused.

“I’m not gonna sell it,” Mr Stefl told the newspaper. “I’m going to stay here. I love it here, as messed up as it is.”

On 13 August, Keoni, a Kanaka Maoli Kia’i (Native Hawaiian Activist) tweeted asking people who are receiving calls from relators to take down their names so they could expose them.

More than 4,000 people are displaced and at least 99 have been killed as a result of the fires that began last week.

Mr Green said he expected the death toll number to increase in the coming days as cadaver dogs will continue their search of burned areas.

Residents of Maui were given little notice when the fires rapidly approached neighbourhood and towns. People had no time to gather their valuables or personal belongings before fleeing for safety.

Richy Palalay, a 25-year-old who was born in raised in Lahaina told The Associated Press that his workplace, his neighbourhood, his friends’ homes and potentially his own home were burned down in the fire.

Mr Palalay said he is worried that investors will seize the opportunity to pay a lower price for the land locals live on to build expensive resorts.

“I’m more concerned of big land developed coming in and seeing this charred land as an opportunity to rebuild,” Mr Palalay told Associated Press on Saturday.

The average home in Lahaina is valued at around $1m, according to Zillow – making it a more expensive spot for the average person to buy a home.

But the rise of hotels, resorts and condos on Maui, has made it a favourite, and more affordable, destination.

“One of the things that we as a community and as a state is going to be faced with, is how do we begin to address the long-term recovery, rebuilding, keeping people here and not selling off what losses they had and moving,” Archie Kalepa, a resident of Lahaina told The Washington Post.

Mr Kalepa added: “We want to make sure we keep Lahaina, Lahaina.”

John Dimuro, who has been living in Maui for more than 40 years told USA Today that the government should intervene.

“The government should just say ‘no, you’re not allowed to develop,’” Mr Dimuro said on Monday. “Say no, just flat out no.”

Governor Green said in a press conference on Monday that he reached out to the attorney general to “explore options to do a moratorium on any sales of properties that have damaged or destroyed.”

“Moreover I would caution people that is going to be a very long time before any growth or housing can be built and so you will be pretty poorly informed if you try to steal land from our people and then build here,” Mr Green said.