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In sports they call it, "Next man up."
For every player who goes down to injury, another steps in to fill the void. Or to at least try. Subs often struggle to match the capabilities of those they replace, especially if the fallen player is a star. Coaches adjust game plans and exhort the rest of the team to do more.
Lahaina was Maui's star.
With its busy harbor, restaurants, entertainment, activities and shopping, it served as the epicenter of the island's hospitality industry. Lahaina was home to most of the west side's workforce housing, as well as its social, medical and professional services. Nowhere else on this island was Maui's rich history and culture on such prominent display.
August's wind-whipped wildfires turned most of those keystones to ash. Lahaina town has been taken out of play for years, if not decades. Its shell-shocked people are in recovery mode.
"Next woman up" implies the rest of the island and state will step forward to carry the load. Daunting challenges indeed for already stressed agencies, businesses and nonprofits struggling through funding and staffing shortages. There is no doubting their people's willingness to provide everything from housing assistance and early childhood education to mental health services. It is just that there are already not enough hours in their days or enough dollars in their accounts. As tax revenues plummet and demands spike, clouds form on the horizon.
Opponents of tourism will hate to admit it, but the hospitality industry is going to play a key role in our recovery. Somebody has to pay the bills. The money visitors spend provides for nearly every island household and agency, either directly or indirectly.
The communities of Kihei, Wailea, Kaanapali, Kapalua and others will be counted on to adapt and step up. Lahaina was not as much about room nights, as it was the place to go for food, drinks and entertainment. It was where visitors hopped on boats and shopped for treasures to take home.
The loss of so many restaurants, stores and activities leaves giant shoes to fill. Remember the hours-long lines outside Maui's restaurants when tourism returned faster than our pandemic workforce? No matter how hungry and thirsty visitors were, they had limited places to go. Reservations were nearly impossible. Is that what it is going to look like outside every restaurant in Kaanapali? Imagine the Yelp reviews.
Hoteliers and entrepreneurs may reopen long-closed restaurants, bars and stores only to find they cannot staff them. Finding housing for all our workers will be an immense challenge. Maui cannot handle another runaway train of 3 million visitors a year. Not only would it be an unsustainable drain on our resources and quality of living, Maui simply does not have sufficient housing, amenities or manpower.
Not with our shining star in intensive care.