Hawaiʻi crisis center contacts related to the 2023 Maui wildfires, with monthly pre- and post-fire analyses

Purpose This study examines the feasibility of whether data collected daily at a crisis center could advise post-disaster response efforts following the 2023 Maui wildfires in Hawaiʻi, with an aim to inform both short- and long-term behavioral health and recovery efforts for those impacted. Design/methodology/approach Included in this study were Maui fire-related contacts received between August 8 and December 31, 2023, compared to the same months in 2022 and 2023. Confidence intervals for two proportions at the 95% level were calculated to identify significant differences (p < 0.05). Findings “Post-disaster needs” in August 2023 peaked at 41.06% and trended downward to 8.14% by December 2023. “Mental health issues” increased from 26.57% in August to 41.86% in December. Maui fire-related contacts with a primary concern of “suicidal crisis/thoughts” increased to a high of 9.30% in December, from a low of 2.90% in August 2023. Research limitations/implications These findings aligned with results from other disaster-related behavioral health studies, suggesting that using real-time crisis center data in the aftermath of a disaster can reliably inform response and recovery efforts for affected individuals. Additionally, results identified significant behavioral health trends of those affected by the 2023 Maui wildfires. Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the few studies to analyze individual-level data collected daily at a crisis center in the aftermath of a wildfire.