Crews are continuing to battle blazes in several places on the island while authorities are urging visitors to stay away. Video / NZ Herald / AP / Reuters
Issuing the statement on his Instagram alongside a carousel of images that included a video of the blazes, the actor sternly wrote, “Do not travel to Maui”. Momoa said: “Do not convince yourself that your presence is needed on an island that is suffering this deeply.”
“Mahalo (thank you) to everyone who has donated and shown aloha to the community in this time of need.” The actor’s post, which was originally created by the non-profit organisation Aina Momona (which means The Fertile and Rich Land), added tourists should stay away because the devastation from the natural disaster will have “a lasting island-wide impact on Maui’s resources”.
It stated: “Our community needs time to heal, grieve and restore. That means the less visitors on the island taking up critical resources that have become extremely limited the better.”
Momoa also shared additional posts that demonstrate just how much destruction has taken place, but tried to stay positive as he captioned one of the clips with an uplifting message that said: “We will rise again, more connected, united, and determined.”
Momoa, father of two, has always been fiercely proud of his Hawaiian roots.
In 2022, the star stripped down on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ to reveal he was wearing only a traditional Hawaiian malo that showed off his bottom. He said: “I actually don’t even like wearing clothes anymore,” before revealing he wears the loincloth “every day” and “all the time”.
