A hundred boats used to call Lahaina Harbor home. Most burned in their slips and sunk during the wildfires in August 2023. They have since been removed.
The companies that were able to stay in business have been forced to make do with fueling at Ma’alaea Harbor. For Kā’anapali-based vessels, the trip to Ma’alaea is four hours roundtrip.
The Conversation recently visited Ma’alaea as boats fired up their engines, preparing to take passengers on a sunset cruise.
Boat captain Riley Coon is the third-generation co-owner of Trilogy Excursions, which lost one boat in the fires.
"It was the boat that me and my dad sailed across the ocean from Oregon. We had her built when I was 13, and when I saw that boat sitting with all the other boats in what used to be a parking lot on land, it was hard to describe," he said. "Very sad, just seeing boats that you're used to seeing floating in our beautiful harbor were now cut up into pieces just stacked up like dominoes."
With 52 years in business, the company is probably Maui’s oldest tour operator, Coon said. He hopes to one day celebrate 100 years.
Coon said he was thrilled to hear that the Lahaina fuel dock will reopen for business Tuesday.
"We know Lahaina Harbor will be brought back at some point, but we're not holding our breath," Coon added. "Getting fuel back is a first major win and a first big step."
Keahi Ho, the owner of GungHo Sailing, is also a Lahaina firefighter. When he spoke with us in February, he shared his experience fighting the blaze that overtook his town, his home, his boat and his harbor.
Like Coon, Ho grew up around boats and has the ocean under his skin.
"My company is newer, but my daughter was working for me, and she's kind of the third generation. Hopefully I get to pass a torch onto her. Been around for a long time, looking to stay around for a long time," Ho said.
Boaters hope efforts to rebuild the economic engine that is tied to the harbor will double down and help the community recover. Ho said the harbor is the heart of Lahaina for everyone from fishing boats to tour boats to nearby restaurants.
"I would love to see the opportunity taken that while there's nobody in there to really get after it and get it done," he said.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Aug. 5, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. Sophia McCullough adapted this story for the web.
