Geography Professor Abby Frazier, lead author of a chapter in the Fifth National Climate Assessment, is exploring the physical and socioeconomic impacts on Pacific island communities hit hard by “compound climate extremes”—a combination of multiple climate hazards.
Racing for answers to prolonged climate threats in the Pacific Islands
Frazier and her research colleagues had been warning for years about the worsening drought conditions that could lead to more wildfires in Hawai‘i.
But it wasn’t until August 2023, when flames raced through the fields and hills of Maui, killing 102 people and destroying the historic town of Lahaina, that the world took notice.
“People are not aware how bad fire can be in Hawai‘i. In some years, the percent area burned is higher than what you have in the Western U.S.,” says Frazier, lead author of the Fifth National Climate Assessment’s Hawai‘i and Pacific Islands chapter.
She now is exploring the physical and socioeconomic impacts on communities hit hard by such “compound climate extremes” — a combination of multiple climate hazards.