Maui businesses face mixed messages on tourism after wildfires

Some businesses on Hawaii’s Maui Island have cut back on staff and reduced their operating hours in the wake of the deadly wildfires, with the state government’s guidance to travelers evolving as recovery efforts proceed.

In emergency proclamations issued in the days after the fires broke out on Aug. 8, the office of Hawaii Gov. Josh Green asked tourists to leave the affected area as soon as they could safely do so, and “strongly discouraged” nonessential travel to the island. Tourists heeded the messages, with more than 46,000 people leaving Maui by Aug. 13, according to local media reports. ...