Hawaii official criticized online for slow response to Maui fires.
One Hawaii Official Under Fire for Response to Maui Fires
One Hawaii official has found himself at the center of a viral online controversy as people point fingers at him for his handling of the four fires in Maui. M. Kaleo Manuel, the deputy director for water resource management at the Department of Land and Natural Resources, has faced intense criticism after allegations surfaced that he procrastinated in sending water to the affected island.
When the Honolulu Civil Beat published a story citing sources that accused Manuel of delaying water release, the public took to social media to express their outrage. People on X, formerly known as Twitter, didn’t hold back in their criticism of Manuel’s actions.
“Meet M. Kaleo Manuel, the official who refused to release water in Maui, contributing to up to 106 deaths,” Jeremy Kauffman wrote on X, citing the original article. “A Hawaiian Studies major, Kaleo prefers a traditional, holistic ‘One Water’ approach where water is revered, not used. Water requires ‘true conversations about equity.'”
Kauffman, the CEO of a bitcoin company, even shared a Zoom interview video of Manuel that was posted on YouTube about 10 months ago. In the video, Manuel discusses his views on water and its significance.
“Native Hawaiians treated water as one of the earthly manifestations of a god,” Manuel said in the video. “We’ve become used to looking at water as something that we use and not something that we revere. … We can reconnect to that traditional value set.”
Another critic, Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, tweeted about Manuel’s philosophy on water and its impact on the Maui fires.
“Here is M. Kaleo Manuel, the Hawaii water official who refused to release water resources and let landowners fight the Maui fire, explaining his ‘philosophy’ about water,” Kirk wrote. “I’m sure all the victims of the Maui fire are grateful their leaders were focused on worshipping water rather than using it to save their lives.”
As the controversy grew, it was revealed that Manuel is an Obama Foundation “Asia Pacific Leader” and a climate activist who believes in revering water above all else. This revelation sparked further outrage, with GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy criticizing the DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) agenda and its potential consequences.
“Now we’re learning that the official who delayed the approval is an Obama Foundation ‘Asia Pacific Leader’ and a climate activist who believes water should be ‘revered’ first and foremost,” Ramaswamy wrote. “The DEI agenda is literally costing people their lives. Hawaii’s Democratic governor, Josh Green, said there are people ‘fighting against the release of water to fight fires’ & that it needs to be explored further. The No. 1 responsibility of government is to protect its citizens. The victims and their families deserve the TRUTH.”
Amidst the public outcry, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre expressed support for an investigation into the Maui wildfires during a television interview. Jean-Pierre assured viewers that the White House is committed to uncovering the truth and understanding what happened.
The death toll in Maui has tragically reached 106 as of Wednesday, making it the deadliest fire incident in the past 100 years. Due to the severity of the burns, only a small minority of the deceased have been identified.
Fortunately, two of the original four fires have been contained, and as of Tuesday, one of them has been completely extinguished.
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