Three days after Hurricane Lowell hit, Kauaʻi is facing a long and expensive recovery, which is bad news for local workers and business owners but shows some early signs of community support.

• Big waves tore through a well-known Poʻipū restaurant, pushing rocks and trees into the dining room.
• More than 100 people work there, and the owners are setting up a nonprofit to collect donations for staff during the rebuild.
• Damage runs from the south shore up the west side, hitting homes and businesses alike.
• Roads, power, and other basic infrastructure need to be rebuilt before normal life resumes.
• The full scale of the loss is still unclear, with owners saying it is too soon to know what they are dealing with.

Outlook: Cleanup and damage assessments will continue for weeks, and businesses that survived are aiming to reopen rather than close for good.