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Lessons from Lahaina: Months of testing followed post-wildfire reopenings
An aerial view of lots which have been cleared of wildfire debris, covered in gray gravel, as recovery work continues on Aug. 3, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii.
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Mario Tama
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Getty Images North America
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Topline:
California schools are navigating the reopening of campuses that have experienced a range of wildfire outcomes, from complete destruction to poor air quality. In Maui, schools didn’t reopen for about two months in the wake of a wildfire that leveled Lahaina.
The backstory: In August 2023, a wildfire caused by downed power lines destroyed the town of Lahaina on the northwest coast of Maui. The blaze wrecked an elementary school, temporarily closed three other campuses, and displaced about 3,000 students.
Safety concerns: With some campuses blocks away from the burn zone, parents and educators raised concerns the demolition and ongoing clean-up in the burn zone could harm students. Some post-fire soil samples in Lahaina showed elevated levels of arsenic, lead and other toxic substances.
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The recovery: The Hawaii Department of Education worked with state and federal agencies to remove debris, clean and flush the water lines, restore power, test the soil for heavy metals and install air quality sensors before schools reopened in October. “We wanted to assure a heavily traumatized community that we were doing all we could to be able to demonstrate that the environment was safe,” said Gary Bignami, who oversees the environmental services unit at the Hawaii Department of Education.
Read more on what's being done here:
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