WASHINGTON, D.C. >> Members of Congress today will attempt to get to the bottom of what led to the deadly Lahaina firestorm — including questions that to date have gone largely unanswered about the timeline of what happened Aug. 8, Hawaiian Electric Co.’s electrical grid, and wildfire mitigation measures.
Congress will question HECO’s top executive, the chair of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission and Hawaii’s chief energy officer today about the role the electrical grid played in the Lahaina fires that killed at least 97, left 7,500 homeless and caused $5.5 billion in damage.
The first hearing about the circumstances, “Investigating the Role of Electric Infrastructure in the Catastrophic Maui Fire,” will be held by the 52-member U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
No Hawaii lawmakers sit on the committee.
According to a memo to members from the committee’s majority Republican staff, lawmakers will ask about the “sequence of events” surrounding the Maui fires and what “utility infrastructure conditions that may have exacerbated the risk” of a catastrophic fire that is the deadliest in the country in a century.
Shelee Kimura, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric; Leodoloff Asuncion Jr., chair of the PUC; and Mark Glick, the state’s chief energy officer, will make opening statements before being questioned by the members.
Members plan to question Kimura about HECO’s “actions and plans to address fire risks, maintain its equipment and secure the grid against intensifying threats such as wildfires,” and the status of efforts to harden and protect Maui’s grid against wildfires.
The committee also wants to know about HECO’s “prioritization of fire safety precautions among competing priorities for grid modernization and improvement.”
HECO through subsidiary Maui Electric Co. serves about 70,000 customers on the island.
In prepared remarks obtained by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Kimura, who took over the top job at the 132-year-old utility in January 2022, said of Aug. 8 “we saw human loss and devastation at a speed and on a scale that even two months later is difficult for our hearts and minds to process. I want to start by honoring those lost and those whose lives have been forever changed by this overwhelming and tragic event,” Kimura wrote.
“We all want to learn about what happened on August 8 so that it never happens again. On that day, a fire at 6:30 a.m., the ‘Morning Fire,’ appears to have been caused by power lines that fell in high winds. The Maui County Fire Department responded to this morning fire and reported that by 9 a.m. it was ‘100% contained.’ The fire department later determined it had been ‘extinguished’ and left the scene in the early afternoon,” wrote Kimura. “At about 3 p.m., a time when all of Hawaiian Electric’s power lines in West Maui had been de-energized for more than six hours, a second fire, the ‘Afternoon Fire,’ began in the same area. The cause of this Afternoon Fire that devastated Lahaina has not been determined.”
Kimura said the utility is working “tirelessly” to figure out what happened, and is cooperating fully with investigators from the state Department of the Attorney General and U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The PUC is expected to start its own investigation into the Aug. 8 fires in Lahaina and elsewhere on Maui after the Attorney General and ATF probes wrap up. The Maui Fire Department has not determined the cause and origin of the deadly Lahaina blaze.
Asuncion, in prepared remarks to the committee obtained by the Star-Advertiser, wrote that the PUC in its oversight role, has “continuously sought” information regarding the policies, procedures and activities of the utility related to wildfire and natural disaster mitigation and response.
“The devastation of the August wildfires should never happen again. In thinking about this priority, the Commission aims to ensure to the greatest extent possible that electric utility operations, infrastructure, and equipment in Hawaii are safe, reliable, and resilient to natural disasters such as wildfires, hurricanes, and flooding,” Asuncion wrote. “We are working with the utilities to take immediate actions to meet this objective, such as by identifying and implementing any necessary changes to operational protocols on Red Flag Warning days, and reviewing the utilities’ approach to determining whether power lines should be built above or below ground.
“Preventing future events will also require thoughtful research, thorough investigations, strategic planning, and engagement with key stakeholders. For example, as we gain a better understanding of why the fires ignited, we will evaluate whether changes to utility operations, infrastructure, or equipment could have prevented such ignition,” he wrote.
The PUC is focused on reviewing HECO’s proposed Climate Adaptation Transmission and Distribution Project, “which proposes an important package of technologies, practices, and planning techniques to improve system resilience.”
In a prepared statement for the committee posted on the Hawaii State Energy Office’s website, Glick wrote that “a multi-pronged approach” that addresses everything from cutting back invasive grasses to honing safeguards and responses to wildfires is needed in the aftermath.
“We expect that some of the short-term actions would include evaluating additional recommendations for vegetation management and public safety power shutoffs and the availability of new technology to limit wildfires and their adverse effects,” Glick said. “Some of the long-term approaches for continued exploration include advanced wildfire mitigation planning and investment in technology and data. We also expect that other expanded wildfire management efforts would involve continued exploration of building standards and research to support lifeline sectors, vulnerable populations, communities, and the energy system.”
Glick wrote that “much of the problem” is located on private property which limits government’s options. The private and public sector must work together to “safeguard our essential energy infrastructure.”
Chair Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chair Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., along with Energy, Climate and Grid Security Subcommittee Chair Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., announced the House investigation in August.
The committee is “empowered to oversee energy supply, reliability of all power, and regulation of energy resources throughout the country,” according to an August letter announcing the investigation.
“To that end, we seek a fuller understanding of the role, if any, of the electric infrastructure in this tragic event.”
The inquisition occurs at a time when House Republicans also are probing the Biden administration’s response to the Maui fires and pursuing impeachment proceedings of President Joe Biden as the election year approaches.
Biden declared a major disaster for Hawaii on Aug. 10, making federal disaster assistance available.
Hawaii lawmakers are hopeful the hearing will focus on understanding what happened Aug. 8 and how Hawaii can bolster the electrical grid to prevent future wildfires.
“Understanding what happened before, during, and immediately after these fires is important to better prepare for and mitigate the risks of wildfires moving forward. Already, the Hawaii Attorney General and other entities have opened independent investigations into this tragedy,” said U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, in a statement to the Star-Advertiser. “Any House investigation into the fires should be fully focused on the facts, not politics, and developing an objective, factual understanding of how this tragedy unfolded. The last thing the Maui community needs right now is for their pain to be politicized.”
U.S. Rep. Ed Case told the Star-Advertiser in a statement that responsible congressional oversight to determine whether and how federal programs and funding prevent and address disasters like on Maui is “our obligation.”
Case said he hopes the hearing is not “just another political game that disrespects a grieving community and diverts our focus from critical recovery efforts.”
“And if my colleagues really want to help, there is nothing more important than passing a federal funding bill now that continues those efforts uninterrupted,” Case said.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz told the Star-Advertiser in a statement that he believes any oversight hearing that will help everyone learn more about what happened on Maui and how to prevent another catastrophic fire from happening again is a “good thing.”
“It’s unclear how the majority in the House will conduct these hearings, but I’m hopeful this won’t be used as a political talking point. Maui needs our continued support on a bipartisan basis,” Schatz said.
U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda, whose district includes Maui, told the Star-Advertiser in a statement that she hopes the committee will be able to “understand the level of devastation that took place, that we need to do everything possible to support our Maui ohana.”
“With a federal shutdown looming, I hope this hearing helps ensure that critical resources continue to flow to Maui to the people who need it most. As people are actively working to rebuild their lives, the last thing they need is a government shutdown slowing down crucial services and resources that our Maui families depend on,” Tokuda said.
