USPS Halts Lahaina Home Delivery for Rebuilt Fire Zones, Leaving 25% of Homes Without Street Mail
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Sep 3
USPS Halts Lahaina Home Delivery for Rebuilt Fire Zones, Leaving 25% of Homes Without Street Mail
1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 3
Summary
Rebuilt homes in Lahaina’s 2023 wildfire zone are no longer getting door-to-door mail because USPS has classified the area as “new development,” residents said after months of confusion.
Only about 25% of the roughly 2,000 homes destroyed in the fire have been rebuilt, and affected residents must collect mail at a main post office more than two miles away or pay $250 a year for a basic PO box.
Missed deliveries have already caused practical harm: residents reported lapsed insurance policies, missed primary ballots, delayed car-registration notices, and near-missed prescriptions, tax forms and Social Security documents.
USPS permanently closed Lahaina’s downtown branch after fire damage, while a federal spokesperson said local and national officials are reviewing complaints and determining next steps.
Hawaii Representative Jill Tokuda and Mayor Richard Bissen are pressing USPS to restore home delivery, as residents argue a historic town should not lose essential service because homes had to be rebuilt.