The wildfires that leveled the town of Lahaina on Maui wiped out shops, restaurants and a hotel built more than century ago, burning across some of the most spectacular and wealthiest enclaves of the state.
High-profile billionaires including Oprah Winfrey, Peter Thiel and Jeff Bezos all have homes on Maui.
But the deadly blaze also destroyed something less visible yet vital to this island’s economic survival: modest houses and apartments where many workers running Maui’s booming tourism industry lived.
The destruction in Lahaina has highlighted Maui’s longstanding challenge with housing for the people who work in its hotels and on its golf courses, without whom the island could not function as a beloved destination for visitors from around the world.
“We already had a housing crisis,’’ said Leslie Wilkins, president of the Maui Economic Development Board.
Persons:
Oprah Winfrey, Peter Thiel, Jeff Bezos, ’ ’, Leslie Wilkins, ”
Organizations:
Maui Economic Development Board
Locations:
Lahaina, Maui