Hawaii lawmakers convened this week for the first time since the burning of historic Lahaina awakened the state to the deadly and costly threat posed by wildfires in an age of climate change.
The tragedy refocused the attention of lawmakers. Now, fighting and preventing wildfires and helping the island of Maui recover from the flames top the agenda as Hawaii’s Legislature returns for a new session this week.
“It really kicked us into gear in a different way,” said state Rep. Nadine Nakamura, the House majority leader and a Democrat.
The Aug. 8 bl