Puna residents on Hawaii island still waiting for restoration efforts after Kilauea eruption
By Shanila Kabir
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PUNA, Hawaii (KITV) — Five years after the Kilauea eruption tore through several Hawaii Island neighborhoods, residents said they are still dealing with the destruction.
Some said it is still challenging to access their homes because of damage to the roadways.
A resident at Kapoho Vacationland calls her life “glorified camping.”
Deb Smith said she hikes at least three miles every day with groceries because there are no roads in her neighborhood, or outside of it.
“The county road is covered right now. We are accessing through a neighbor’s property with his permission to get to the back of ours. We have to cross lava and get in through the jungle to get to the back of our property,” said Smith.
The only way Smith and her husband can get medical care is through helicopter because EMS has no way to get to her home.
The eruption burned down around 300 residential properties in the area.
Smith said the Kilauea eruption destroyed her original home and she only bought a home that survived because back in 2019 the city promised to reconstruct the roads.
“We need roads to our subdivisions and then we can do our subdivision. Just the county bringing the road to our subdivision doesn’t get us home, we still have a mile plus to get back to our house on our legal access,” said Smith.
Other residents told KITV4 they are frustrated restoration efforts continue being delayed while they still live recovery mode.
Councilmember Ashley Kierkiewicz represents the district and says construction plans were supposed to begin in October. However, now they have been to pushed to a year from now.
“I can’t help but feel sad for my community. There’s so many decisions they’re having to make and for their kids. Sometimes they’re taking care of their aging parents as well. There are real world impacts for the delays we’re experiencing through this process,” said Kierkiewicz.
She adds part of the problem is the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) not being able to perform environmental assessments. From the countyside, she said they have sent all the necessary documents to begin work and they are waiting for FEMA partners to come to Puna and other affected areas.
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