Summary
- Hawaiian Airlines is refurbishing laptops for wildfire victims in Maui, providing them with essential electronic devices.
- The airline has already refurbished 45 devices and plans to continue donating refurbished laptops until the waitlist is cleared.
- Hawaiian Airlines played a significant role in evacuating residents and visitors during the deadly wildfire, offering reduced fares and transporting over 12,500 individuals.
Hawaiian Airlines is refurbishing laptops and other electronic devices that were destined for the landfill. This initiative aims to provide the victims of the August 2023 wildfire in Maui with personal electronic devices that “are essential gateways to public information, e-learning, community resources, and loved ones.”
The initiative
Hawaiian Airlines’ Sustainability Employee Resource Group (ERG) and IT Field Services team has recently responded to a request from a Maui organization for device donations in support of their new Laptop and Cell Phone Relief Program.
Working together, they swiftly sorted through numerous laptops destined for disposal and successfully refurbished 45 devices, restoring them to full functionality. Commenting on the initiative, Diane Crouch, senior executive assistant at Hawaiian and communications chair of the ERG, said:
“Diverting old laptops that still have many years of life left away from e-waste and getting them into the hands of people who lost everything in the wildfires was important to us from both a community and sustainability perspective.”
According to the flag carrier of Hawaiian islands, more than 1,000 applicants have applied for a new electronic device since the launch of the program. Hawaiian’s Sustainability ERG and IT Field Services team plan to continue supporting the Center with refurbished laptop donations until its waitlist is cleared.
Photo: Hawaiian Airlines
The airline has partnered with the J. Walter Cameron Center, an organization that offers programs and administrative support to entities delivering essential health, education, and human services to Maui residents. Their collaborative device relief initiative began on September 8, commencing with a community survey to assess the demand and a call for donations.
Hawaiian’s involvement in relief efforts
The Hawaiian airline responded to the Maui situation as both residents and visitors hurried to escape the island’s deadly wildfire threat in August. Nearly 15,000 visitors reportedly evacuated the area within the first days, with several carriers offering reduced fares and rescue flights.
Hawaiian Airlines transported over 12,500 individuals out of the island during the peak of the disaster. The airline made every main cabin seat available from Kahului Airport (OGG) to Honolulu for $19 at the height of the disaster. The airline also added more flights to carry water, food, cargo, and other essential resources to OGG at the time of intensive wildfires.
Photo: EQRoy/Shutterstock
The fires, which broke out on August 8, 2023, have become the deadliest wildfire in modern US history as the death toll climbed to at least 97 people and left 31 missing, according to ABC News. After waiting for a month and a half, Maui residents have recently returned for the first time since the fire.
According to Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism statistics, passenger arrivals to the island have dropped from around 7,000 per day to about 2,000 to 3,000 per day since the disaster.
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Sources: ABC News, Hawaii govt