Climate

Long after the Maui fires, toxic metals linger in residents’ bodies

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Based on a feed excerpt; full article content has not been acquired. Source evidence retrieved 16/10/2026, 08:45:24 UTC.

Briefings

Research published last year by the University of Hawai'i at Mānoā's Maui Wildfire Exposure Study found that more than 1 in 5 Maui residents had reduced lung function three years after the 2023 wildfires. A follow-up study published in October 2026 analyzed 1,400 adults and found elevated levels of toxic metals in urine samples, with arsenic 2.2 times higher, barium 2.3 times higher, and manganese 3.8 times higher than baseline. Researchers cannot yet determine if fire emissions or pre-existing environmental factors caused the contamination. The study highlights that health impacts persist long after fires extinguish, and acknowledges settler colonialism as a confounding factor affecting local health.

Key points

• A follow-up study published in October 2026 analyzed 1,400 adults across Maui six to 18 months after the 2023 wildfires and found elevated levels of arsenic, barium, and manganese in urine samples.
• Arsenic levels were nearly 40 times higher than baseline, while manganese levels were 3.8 times higher, with researchers unable to distinguish between fire-related and pre-existing contamination.

Context

The study builds on a previous 2023 research project by the University of Hawai'i at Mānoā's Maui Wildfire Exposure Study (MauiWES) that found reduced lung function in over 1 in 5 residents three years after the 2023 Maui wildfires. This new research expands on those findings by identifying specific toxic metal contaminants in the island's population.

Limitations

The study covers 1,400 adults across Maui six to 18 months after the fires. Researchers lack comparable data from before the fires to determine the extent of contamination from the disaster versus pre-existing environmental factors. The study acknowledges settler colonialism as a confounding factor affecting local health but does not quantify its specific contribution to the metal exposure.

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