09/16/2026
In the days after Hurricane Lowell passed Maui, our ocean community did exactly what we hope they will do: they let us know when something looked wrong.
Malama Kai Foundation put out the call and partners rose to the occasion! What MKF’s ’s Day-Use Mooring Buoy team saw during their mooring work last week at Molokini made clear that a broader assessment was needed following Hurricane Lowell, both of the mooring infrastructure and of the reef itself.
So, with less than two days to pull it together, a rapid response began taking shape.
Trilogy Excursions stepped up on short notice with a vessel and support crew, providing the platform that made the day possible. brought the coral-survey expertise, and volunteers provided the manpower needed to document what had happened on the reef. coordinated and supported the trip while their field team assessed the mooring infrastructure. And staff volunteered their time to photograph and document the effort.
Together, the group was able to accomplish two missions in one morning.
The coral-survey teams documented and measured numerous coral colonies, including some substantial colonies, that had been disrupted by the storm. The impacts were not uniform. Some sections of Molokini showed considerably more physical disturbance from wave energy than others, while we also saw extensive areas of healthy coral and healthy reef.
The team also observed signs of previous storm disturbance where coral has since regrown, which gives us reason for cautious optimism. The survey results still need to be evaluated before anyone can say more about the overall extent of the impacts or whether any additional action is appropriate.
Whatever comes next, gathering the information matters. Understanding how storms affect Hawaiʻi’s coral reefs helps us make better decisions about how we care for these places.
And Sunday was a pretty remarkable example of what can happen when organizations, businesses and volunteers are willing to come together quickly around a shared need.
