Big Island resident Kolby Moser co-hosts the Hawaiʻi Radio Hour on Sundays for HPR-1.
She weathered the storm from Waimea, but her parents stayed at their home in Pāhala.
Moser spoke with The Conversation about how communities in the Kaʻū district have fared.
She told HPR that the worst part of the storm hit on Saturday afternoon and went into the evening.
“I woke up in the morning, I saw a lot of videos being posted from Pāhala that they were cut off, that the roads had washed away,” Moser said. “(The) road to Hilo and to Kona were washed away, meaning that the people in Pāhala were trapped.”
Moser added that her friends and family in Kaʻū, from Nāʻālehu to Waiʻōhinu, were hit badly by Lala, losing power and running water.
After struggling to get in contact with her parents, she got through and heard back that they were ok. Moser shared that some of her family had to drive out to Miloliʻi just to get cell phone service.
Moser said that Pāhala, Nāʻālehu and Waiʻōhinu are far from any major towns, so being without power and having no way in or out is worrisome.
“I heard that the road between Pāhala and Hilo is being cleared, so (I’m) just relieved that the county has gone into action so quickly to bring first responders, emergency supplies over to Pāhala because it's terrifying to think that your friends and family would be stuck without any help, and we don't know how long,” Moser said.
Moser said she is so proud to be from Kaʻū and moments like these really show the need to rely on our communities.
“The community of Pāhala is a really tight-knit community,” she added. “So what I had heard from my friends and family there was that everybody was taking care of each other. The uncles were cooking at the shelter, sharing the water that they had. That community is so strong, and they've been through a lot. … Kaʻū people are so resilient and so helpful. They will jump in to help their neighbor without hesitation, and that's just the kind of people that they are.”
How has your community been affected? Get in touch with The Conversation.
This story aired on The Conversation on Aug. 17, 2026. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. Hannah Kaʻiulani Coburn adapted this story for the web.
