Fires on Maui any POA reports?

[MagnoliaBlossom]

The news tonight was filled with footage of the horrific fires on Maui.  Has anyone heard from cruisers on POA about effects throughout the islands from smoke?  Prayers for all those people.

[omahabob]

Winds are out of the east right now at 18 to 21 knots, so Lanai would likely be the only other island affected.

Edited August 10, 2023 by omahabob

[omahabob]

This is public source information (not copyrighted) from NASA and the Forest Service.

 

[genealogyfan]

According to cruisemapper it's docked on the Island of Kauai.

Here is the original schedule.

Departure / Arrival

Port of Call

05 Aug 19:00	Honolulu
06 Aug 08:00 - 07 Aug 18:00	Kahului
08 Aug 08:00 - 18:00	Hilo
09 Aug 07:00 - 17:30	Kailua-Kona
10 Aug 08:00 - 11 Aug 17:30	Nawiliwili
12 Aug 07:00	Honolulu

Edited August 10, 2023 by genealogyfan

[BirdTravels]

38 minutes ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

The news tonight was filled with footage of the horrific fires on Maui.  Has anyone heard from cruisers on POA about effects throughout the islands from smoke?  Prayers for all those people.

Ports skipped this week. Maybe because of the hurricane winds/seas. Maybe because of fires on the Big Island. POA was supposed to be at the Big Island today and tomorrow. She spent most of the day sailing around Kauai and finally docked. The fires are being fueled by the winds from the hurricane. 
 

 

[omahabob]

The Big Island fires are all but extinguished. The Maui fires appear to be dying down as well.

 

[omahabob]

Heard they evacuated the Kahua Ranch. Hope the shopping center signs are still there.

 

[JoeTec]

Doesn't @BermudaBound2014 live on Maui half the year? 

ABCNY news was saying this morning 36 people have died in the fires on Maui so far. 

Praying for all those families

[cgrinsea3]

NCL & Pride of America should make a statement ASAP as they are regular weekly visitors to Maui. I’d love if NCL would donate towards the displaced islanders. Food, bedding, toiletries will be needed and every small thing adds up.

We are scheduled for Pride of America in late October and were just researching our Maui plans. At this point, not sure it’s best to proceed in case the Maui stop is dropped. NCL needs to clarify this for upcoming POA cruises.

Edited August 10, 2023 by cgrinsea3

[1JockeyGirl]

Whole town of Lahaina burned according to reports. Those poor people!!!

 

I hope NCL does help with relief efforts. Would gladly chip in.

 

We are on NCL Spirit B2B (from Alaska to Tahiti) that circles Hawaii twice Sept 11-19, 2023.

 

That is a month away but I wonder if NCL Spirit and POA will avoid port to allow Maui time to try to recover from this tragedy???

[SimplyAlbert]

I'm pretty active on the POA social media page since we're cruising in November.

 

Reports from passengers this week were they skipped Hilo and Kona.  They made to Maui before the fires.   They received a $200 onboard credit and 20% off a future cruise.

 

Passengers on the August 12th sailing haven't heard anything yet.

 

They had evacuated 2000 tourists yesterday with another 4000 to go (and some of those may have already been evacuated).

 

36 reported dead.  Multiple injuries.  People with severe burns were flown to Honolulu for treatment.

 

Someone reported that Maui was closed to tourists now, but I haven't seen anything official on that yet.

Edited August 10, 2023 by SimplyAlbert
typo

[mking8288]

Cellular services are down in many parts of Maui - news relayed via Oahu - latest photos

https://www.khon2.com/maui-news/photos-intensifying-brush-fires-wreak-havoc-on-maui/

 

There are active evacuations ongoing as SAR continues, some island residents displaced are being evacuated to Oahu.  Lahaina, historical town lost many businesses to the fire and thus far 36 lives lost, sadly.  https://www.khon2.com/top-stories/

 

Suffice to say, assume and expect major disruptions, changes and access closed or restricted.  Mahalo. 

[cruiseny4life]

2 hours ago, JoeTec said:

Doesn't @BermudaBound2014 live on Maui half the year? 

ABCNY news was saying this morning 36 people have died in the fires on Maui so far. 

Praying for all those families

Maui and Michigan. I'm hoping she is well. 

[mafig]

12 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Maui and Michigan. I'm hoping she is well. 

Me too.

Hope she posts to let us know she is safe.🤞

[DCGuy64]

I was also thinking of @BermudaBound2014

[BermudaBound2014]

OMGOsh.. you folks are way too kind. I am touched. Truly.

 

I spend the summers in Michigan so am fine physically, but I am broken hearted for Maui.

 

For those wondering about cruise ship stops to Lahaina. I realize you mean no disrespect, but this is apocalyptic destruction. It will likely be years  before cruise ships visit this port again (if ever given that there was a local push to keep cruise ships out of Lahaina prior to the fire). 

 

It took Paradise, California 2 years before that city returned to some normalcy. It will take MUCH for Lahaina. The challenges of rebuilding on island compared to mainland are significant. Everything must come in by cargo. We can't send caravans of volunteers to help rebuild because there isn't even enough housing  for the Ohana. I can't wrap my head around the ramifications for the West Side just yet but I know that I was very blessed to have experienced Front Street as it was.

 

What Maui needs now is money. I can't personally verify any of these sites, but please consider showing the residents of Maui some Aloha by donating:

https://www.hawaiimagazine.com/how-you-can-donate-and-help-support-maui-communities-right-now/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 10, 2023 by BermudaBound2014

[mking8288]

Alocha.  Visitors are advised to stay away and not go to Maui until such time ... sorry, POA cruisers with plans ahead, expect changes.  Southwest leading efforts to assist in evac & recovery, $19 airfares & $1 for pets to relocate to Oahu, per latest news posted - 

https://beatofhawaii.com/hawaii-flights-16-19-due-to-maui-fire/ 

 

Travel related news & resources also here - https://beatofhawaii.com/

 

Here's hoping that NCL will make timely announcements soon as in ASAP.  We have friends planning to be out in Honolulu later this month ... travel & trip insurance will probably kick in for them.  

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

OMGOsh.. you folks are way too kind. I am touched. Truly.

 

I spend the summers in Michigan so am fine physically, but I am broken hearted for Maui.

 

For those wondering about cruise ship stops to Lahaina. I realize you mean no disrespect, but this is apocalyptic destruction. It will likely be years  before cruise ships visit this port again (if ever given that there was a local push to keep cruise ships out of Lahaina prior to the fire). 

 

It took Paradise, California 2 years before that city returned to some normalcy. It will take MUCH for Lahaina. The challenges of rebuilding on island compared to mainland are significant. Everything must come in by cargo. We can't send caravans of volunteers to help rebuild because there isn't even enough housing  for the Ohana. I can't wrap my head around the ramifications for the West Side just yet but I know that I was very blessed to have experienced Front Street as it was.

 

What Maui needs now is money. I can't personally verify any of these sites, but please consider showing the residents of Maui some Aloha by donating:

https://www.hawaiimagazine.com/how-you-can-donate-and-help-support-maui-communities-right-now/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glad to hear YOU are OK. We don't often get to see our pals from Cruise Critic in real life, but I always am reminded at times like these that we're all just regular human beings with all of the struggles that entails. And my heart breaks for the people of Maui. I was only there once in the 1990s but it was the closest thing to paradise I'd ever seen. Will try and donate some $ to the cause. Take care and stay safe, we're thinking of you and the others who call Hawai'i home.

[BirdTravels]

3 hours ago, SimplyAlbert said:

Reports from passengers this week were they skipped Hilo and Kona.  They made to Maui before the fires. They received a $200 onboard credit and 20% off a future cruise.

 

They had evacuated 2000 tourists yesterday with another 4000 to go (and some of those may have already been evacuated).

I think that they skipped the Big Island because of the winds and seas from the hurricane. The hurricane winds are what caused the fire to spread and prevented air drops from the fire department. 

 

Currently major carriers (United, American, Delta, etc.) have cancelled flights inbound to Maui. And are flying empty, larger if possible, planes out there to help get people home. 

 

The local officials have not discussed when they will invite tourists back. They are very clear that the areas affected by the fires are on a small part of the island and the rest of the island will currently focus on helping those displaced by the fires and will reopen. It's kinda like saying "there are massive brush fires in California",,, but while parts are devastated, the rest of the area continues. 

 

I live in Hawaii part of the year and understand that the economy is mostly dependent upon tourism. While you can photograph those with signs saying "Tourist go home", a large portion of the population make a living off the visitor industry and don't have any income if there are no tourists. 

 

wrt to NCL donating relief supplies, it is not like the Caribbean where you could  pick up supplies in Florida and drop them in ports of call (as NCL has done after recent hurricanes). Nearly 100% of the consumables in Hawaii have to be shipped in from the US mainland or overseas. Other than going a few blocks down the street from the port of Honolulu to Costco Iwilei, there really isn't much that NCL could donate. Hotels are a better source of toiletries and consumables for those in evacuation shelters.  

Edited August 10, 2023 by BirdTravels

[Agent999]

What is happening in Hawai'i is an absolute shame. Many of those folks depend on tourism to make their living. Closing things to the tourists can also be devastating to the residents.

 

For those who haven't sailed the PoA, NCL makes their Maui port call in Kahului, not in Lahaina, which is visited by lines like Princess, Holland America, Celebrity, and Royal Caribbean. A lot of the tourism on the island is on the Eastern half (Road to Hana, Haleakala, etc.).

 

I hope they find some was to keep the ship visiting. Those folks will need the $$$ and support that the tourists bring.

 

[www3traveler]

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

Alocha.  Visitors are advised to stay away and not go to Maui until such time ... sorry, POA cruisers with plans ahead, expect changes.  Southwest leading efforts to assist in evac & recovery, $19 airfares & $1 for pets to relocate to Oahu, per latest news posted - 

https://beatofhawaii.com/hawaii-flights-16-19-due-to-maui-fire/ 

 

Travel related news & resources also here - https://beatofhawaii.com/

 

Here's hoping that NCL will make timely announcements soon as in ASAP.  We have friends planning to be out in Honolulu later this month ... travel & trip insurance will probably kick in for them.  

I would hope that NCL makes announcements as quicklly as possible.  It might take a bit given that many Corporate folks are in Italy at the moment on The Viva.  Today is a veery important day in Her young life-- very first cruise.

Edited August 10, 2023 by www3traveler
correct spelling

[omahabob]

Lahaina harbor is closed until further notice. Since there's no longer any infrastructure there, including electricity, I wouldn't count on that changing anytime soon. The Big Island is likely going to be okay port-wise.

[omahabob]

 

[omahabob]

Lahaina devastated. Pictures here:

https://mauinow.com/2023/08/08/haleakala-highway-closure-due-to-brush-fire-evacuation-of-kula-200-off-auliʻi-dr/

[susiesan]

Not a single note or update regarding POA Hawaii cruises on the NCL website. The least they could do is put up a banner newsflash about Maui before final changes/details about itineraries on future cruises are worked out.

Edited August 10, 2023 by susiesan