Aloha,
This week my heart is heavy. As you know better than anyone ever will, your life changed forever one year ago. The life you knew for years, or perhaps your entire life, disappeared the day that fire burned your beautiful town. The lives lost, the way of life destroyed, and the struggle that has been your existence for an entire year is a tragic and crushing story.
And to add to that, after the smoke cleared, we started trying to understand what happened. It turned out that HECO flipped a switch, powering up a downed line that had been rightfully powered off due to the high winds. Not only that, but the Bishop estates let the property become overgrown, the State allowed HECO to increase rates and failed to enforce grid maintenance, and the County failed in issuing alerts and containing the fire. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the number of entities that failed you and your entire community that day.
And here we are, one year later, with a substantial settlement fund on the table. Over 4 billion dollars need to go to you and the other families affected by the deadliest and most destructive fire in 100 years in this country. But we're not done yet. First, we have to remove the insurance carriers trying to claim that money for themselves. We're going to take a significant step toward that this Tuesday in Maui before Judge Cahill. Then, we need to ensure that you get your share of that money, the resources you need to set your life on the track you choose, and some level of accountability and justice for what these entities allowed to happen to your lives.
Please know this: We are here for you in any way we can be. We are here to help you secure your portion of these resources to rebuild your life, and we are here to ensure Lahaina comes back for you and the other PEOPLE of Lahaina, not for corporate overlords or possibly corrupt government interests. We have invested in Maui, we are here to stay in Maui, and we will continue to help you in the years ahead rebuild the life you deserve.
With all my heart,
Andrew Van Arsdale
