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Jennifer Potter, a former member of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission,

  Jennifer Potter, a former member of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission,  told the news site Honolulu Civil Beat that she believes "there should have been greater alarms raised" by the commission to Hawaiian Electric as forecasts began to warn of the hazardous wind conditions. Potter said the utilities commission should have pushed the electric company to implement a power shut-down protocol ahead of time to mitigate wildfire risks, noting that Hawaii has seen a rise in both the size and intensity of fires in recent years. Firefighting efforts and emergency response A number of agencies were called to respond to wildfires on Maui as the blazes spread rapidly over the island on Tuesday, Aug. 8, although weather conditions linked to Hurricane Dora hindered some of those efforts. National Guard helicopters activated as part of the state's emergency response to the wildfires were grounded as the wind gusts picked up that evening. A state emergency proclamation autho...
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"While Hurricane Dora passes well south with no direct impacts here,

  "While Hurricane Dora passes well south with no direct impacts here,  the strong pressure gradient between it & the high pressure to the north creates a threat of damaging winds & fire weather (due to ongoing dry conditions) from early Mon to Wed," the agency said at the time. Claims surfaced in the following days that Hawaiian Electric, which operates Maui Electric and services 95% of the state overall, did not implement precautionary safety measures included in an emergency plan to reduce wildfire risks ahead of the storm. Citing documents, a Washington Post report noted that the provider did not shut off electricity to areas where strong winds were expected and could spark flames. A spokesperson for Maui Electric told CBS News in a statement that some steps were taken to mitigate the possibility of fires sparking before hurricane winds arrived. "Hawaiian Electric has a robust wildfire mitigation and grid resiliency program that includes vegetation management...
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