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EMERGENCY PROCLAMATION RELATING TO THE MAY 22, 2026, KONA EARTHQUAKE

By the authority vested in me as the Mayor of the County of Hawaiʻi by the Constitution and laws of the State of Hawaiʻi, and by the Charter and ordinances of the County of Hawaiʻi, to prepare for and respond to emergencies and disasters, I, C. KIMO ALAMEDA, Mayor of the County of Hawaiʻi, hereby proclaim as follows:

WHEREAS, Hawai‘i Revised Statutes (HRS) Chapter 127A, provides for the establishment of County of Hawaiʻi (County) organizations for emergency management with the Mayor having direct responsibility and authority over emergency management within the County; and

WHEREAS, HRS Chapter 127A, and Hawai‘i County Code (HCC) Chapter 7, establish a Civil Defense Agency within the County and prescribe its powers, duties, and responsibilities; and

WHEREAS, HRS § 127A-14(b) empowers the Mayor to declare the existence of a local state of emergency in the County by proclamation if the Mayor finds that an emergency or a disaster has occurred or that there is imminent danger or threat of an emergency or a disaster in any portion of the County, as those terms are defined in HRS § 127A-2; and

WHEREAS, the Charter of the County of Hawaiʻi (CCH) § 13-23 and HCC § 7-1-7(a) also empower the Mayor to declare a state of disaster or emergency by proclamation; and

WHEREAS, on Friday, May 22, 2026, at 10:42 PM Hawaiʻi Standard Time (HST), the United States Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (USGS HVO) issued an Earthquake Information Statement reporting that on Friday, May 22, 2026, at approximately 9:46 PM HST, a magnitude-6.0 earthquake occurred approximately seven (7) miles south of Hōnaunau-Nāpōʻopoʻo on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of approximately fourteen (14) miles below sea level; and

WHEREAS, the USGS HVO reported that the earthquake registered a maximum Modified Mercalli Intensity of VII (very strong shaking) both as community-reported and as instrument-derived, with strong to very strong shaking experienced on the west side of the Island of Hawaiʻi, and that more than 2,662 felt reports were submitted to the USGS HVO within the first hour of the event; and

WHEREAS, the USGS HVO further reported that several aftershocks have already occurred and that aftershocks may continue in the coming days and weeks; and

WHEREAS, as of the date of this emergency proclamation, the County’s Civil Defense Agency has received approximately two hundred seven (207) damage reports concentrated in the Districts of Kaʻū, North Kona, and South Kona, including substantial damage to residential structures and to residential, commercial, and agricultural water catchment systems upon which residents and businesses in these districts rely for potable and non-potable water; and

WHEREAS, certain residential structures within the affected areas are currently or potentially unsafe, uninhabitable, or inaccessible as a result of the earthquake, posing a continuing risk of injury or loss of life to occupants and to persons in the surrounding area, and may require the displacement of residents and the provision of emergency sheltering by the County; and

WHEREAS, the County’s Department of Public Works has activated structural engineers and is deploying inspectors to conduct, with owner consent, habitability evaluations of earthquake-damaged structures, and the Civil Defense Agency, the County’s Department of Water Supply, and non-governmental partners, are providing or coordinating disaster-response services to affected persons; and

WHEREAS, the loss of water catchment capacity may create an immediate need to obtain, transport, and stage temporary water distribution for residents and businesses whose private water systems were damaged by the earthquake, and existing County resources and normal government processes may not sufficiently address this need in the time required to protect public health, safety, and welfare; and

WHEREAS, the County has also sustained earthquake damage to its facilities, including the Kealakehe Police Station in North Kona, the Waiea Transfer Station in South Kona, and Kona Scenic Park and Clarence Lum Won Park in North Kona, each of which requires engineering assessment, repair, or continued public-safety measures; and

WHEREAS, the scope and severity of damage to private residential structures, County facilities, and water systems across the Districts of Kaʻū, North Kona, and South Kona is such that recovery is likely to exceed the capabilities of the County acting alone, and may require assistance from other counties, the State, the federal government, or private entities to aid the County and its affected residents and businesses; and

WHEREAS, the invocation and exercise of emergency powers as stated herein are reasonably necessary for the County to expeditiously and effectively prepare for, respond to, mitigate, and recover from the earthquake’s impacts, the continuing risk of aftershocks, the presence of structurally compromised dwellings, and the disruption of water systems serving the affected population, and to otherwise protect the lives, property, environment, public health, welfare, and safety of the County, its residents, and visitors;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, C. KIMO ALAMEDA, Mayor of the County of Hawai‘i, hereby declare, effective May 27, 2026, that a local state of emergency exists under HRS § 127A-14(b), CCH § 13-23, and HCC § 7-1-7(a), because the May 22, 2026, Kona earthquake has caused an emergency or disaster, and the potential aftershocks and resulting damage continue to pose an imminent danger or threat of an emergency or disaster, to the Districts of Kaʻū, North Kona, and South Kona, within the County of Hawaiʻi; and

I FURTHER DECLARE that based on the conditions described above, the following measures are reasonably necessary to address the emergency or disaster:

1. Alerts, warnings, notifications, activations;
2. Warnings and signals for alerts, and any type of warning device, system, or method to be used in connection therewith;
3. Partial or full mobilization of personnel, in advance of, or in response to, an actual emergency or disaster;
4. The conduct of civilians and the movement and cessation of movement of pedestrians and vehicular traffic during, before, and after alerts, emergencies, or disasters;
5. Shut off water mains, gas mains, or electric power connections, or suspend other services; and
6. The mandatory evacuation of the civilian population.

I FURTHER DECLARE that this Emergency Proclamation Relating to the May 22, 2026, Kona Earthquake shall terminate automatically sixty (60) days after its issuance, unless extended or terminated by a separate or supplementary proclamation, in accordance with HRS §§ 127A-14(c) and (d).