{"id":2004084,"date":"2023-08-17T18:06:02","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T22:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/flashback-hawaii-official-who-allegedly-withheld-water-from-firefighters-says-equity-comes-first\/"},"modified":"2023-08-17T18:09:27","modified_gmt":"2023-08-17T22:09:27","slug":"flashback-hawaii-official-who-allegedly-withheld-water-from-firefighters-says-equity-comes-first","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/flashback-hawaii-official-who-allegedly-withheld-water-from-firefighters-says-equity-comes-first\/","title":{"rendered":"FLASHBACK: Hawaii Official Prioritizes &#8216;Equity&#8217; Over Firefighters&#8217; Water Supply"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fflashback-hawaii-official-who-allegedly-withheld-water-from-firefighters-says-equity-comes-first%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2004084&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div>\n<h2>A Hawaii Official Sparks Controversy \u200cOver Water Access<\/h2>\n<p>A Hawaii \u200dofficial\u200c accused of \u2064withholding water from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/11-alarm-fire-burns-n-j-recycling-plant\/\" title=\"11-alarm fire burns N.J. recycling plant\">firefighters battling<\/a> this month&#8217;s deadly wildfires said last year that\u200c his state should make access \u200bto \u200bwater\u2064 conditional on &#8220;conversations about equity.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>M. Kaleo Manuel, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/who-kaleo-manuel-hawaii-official-delayed-water-release-maui-fire-1820405\">was<\/a> \u200c deputy director for the Hawaii Commission on Water Resource Management, has been under scrutiny\u2062 since local outlets \u2063reported he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/who-kaleo-manuel-hawaii-official-delayed-water-release-maui-fire-1820405\">delayed<\/a> the release of water into\u200c reservoirs to help <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/irans-largest-warship-catches-fire-under-unclear-circumstances-sinks-in-gulf-on-oman\/\" title=\"Iran\u2019s Largest Warship Catches Fire \u2018Under Unclear Circumstances,\u2019 Sinks In Gulf On Oman\">firefighters battle<\/a> last \u200dweek&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/clown-in-a-suit-rittenhouse-prosecutor-mocked-over-closing-claim-against-self-defense\/\" title=\"\u2018Clown In A Suit\u2019: Rittenhouse Prosecutor Mocked Over Closing Claim Against Self-Defense\">deadly fire<\/a> that claimed more \u2063than 100 lives.<\/p>\n<h3>Delays and Devastation<\/h3>\n<p>The West Maui Land Company alleged in an Aug. 10 letter to\u2064 Manuel that his agency \u200ddelayed releasing the water for five hours at a critical \u2064early stage of the wildfires. According\u200d to\u2063 <em>Honolulu Civil Beat<\/em>, sources <a href=\"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2023\/08\/a-state-official-refused-to-release-water-for-west-maui-fires-until-it-was-too-late\/\">said<\/a> \u200c Manuel was responsible for the delay. They said Manuel asked the company to consult with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/l-a-sheriff-says-drug-cartels-took-over-large-tracts-of-the-desert-during-pandemic-to-grow-illegal-pot\/\" title=\"L.A. Sheriff Says Drug Cartels Took Over Large Tracts Of The Desert During Pandemic To Grow Illegal Pot\">local farmer<\/a>\u2064 about the impacts\u200c of diverting water before \u200che\u200d would allow\u200d the company access to the water.<\/p>\n<p>The company,\u2063 which \u2062operates three\u2063 of the \u2062water providers in west \u200dMaui, had requested the agency divert water to its reservoirs after nearby firefighters ran out of water. Manuel finally \u200dreleased the water \u2063five hours after the\u200c request was \u2062initially made.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;We\u200b watched the devastation around us without the ability to help,&#8221; the\u2064 company said in a letter \u200bto \u200bManuel \u200dlast \u200cweek. &#8220;We\u2062 anxiously awaited the morning knowing that we could have\u2064 made more water available\u200c to MFD if our request had been immediately approved.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Hawaii&#8217;s Department of Land and Natural Resources <a href=\"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/beat\/state-water-official-who-delayed-water-release-has-been-reassigned\/\">reassigned<\/a> Manuel to\u2062 another \u200bposition within the department after\u200d his role in the disaster was\u200d widely reported. The department urged the\u200b public to \u200creserve judgment on Manuel &#8220;until all\u2062 the facts are known.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Controversial Views on Water Distribution<\/h3>\n<p>The decision comes 10 months after Manuel appeared in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EWh978uT-nA&#038;t=1603s\">livestream<\/a> hosted by the University\u200c of Hawai&#8217;i in which he suggested the distribution of water should be \u2062decided based on &#8220;equity.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;My motto\u2062 is always like, &#8216;Let water connect us and not divide us,'&#8221; Manuel said in the resurfaced clip. &#8220;We can share it, \u2063but \u200cit requires true \u200bconversations about equity.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve become used to looking at water\u2064 as something which we \u2063use and \u2064not necessarily \u2062something that\u200b we revere,&#8221; Manuel added.<\/p>\n<p>Manuel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.obama.org\/programs\/leaders\/asia-pacific\/2019\/kaleo-manuel\/\">was<\/a> a 2019\u2064 &#8220;leader&#8221; at the Obama Foundation. His bio on the foundation&#8217;s website \u200csays he \u200cbelieves &#8220;ancient wisdom and traditional\u200d ecological knowledge of native peoples \u2064will\u2064 help save the \u200dEarth.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Additional Scrutiny on Hawaiian Electric<\/h3>\n<p>Hawaii&#8217;s\u2062 electricity\u2062 provider, Hawaiian Electric, is also \u2062facing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/us-news\/wildfire-risk-maui-hawaiian-electric-7beed21e\">scrutiny<\/a> amid reports that its power\u200b lines may\u2064 have \u200cstarted\u2063 the blaze. According to \u200dthe <em>Wall \u200dStreet \u2063Journal<\/em>, \u2064the\u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/flashback-hawaii-official-who-allegedly-withheld-water-from-firefighters-says-equity-comes-first\/\" title=\"FLASHBACK: Hawaii Official Prioritizes 'Equity' Over Firefighters' Water Supply\">company years \u2063ago committed<\/a>\u2062 to invest in \u2062reducing\u2063 the fire risk posed by its\u200b power lines, but made little progress. Instead, the\u2063 <em>Journal<\/em> reported, Hawaiian Electric was focused on \u2064its goal of\u2063 &#8220;procuring \u2062renewable energy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Hawaii official accused of denying water to firefighters during recent wildfires previously suggested that access to water should be contingent upon discussions about fairness. M. Kaleo Manuel, former deputy director of the Hawaii Commission on Water Resource Management, has faced criticism after reports emerged that he postponed providing water, prompting an investigation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1613,"featured_media":2004085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[544],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2004084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-free-beacon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2004084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1613"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2004084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2004084\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2004085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2004084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2004084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2004084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}