HONOLULU (AP) — Residents who survived the wildfire that leveled the Hawaii town of Lahaina might not be able to afford to live there after it is rebuilt unless officials alter the zoning laws and make other changes, economists warned Friday.

Soaring housing prices have already forced many Native Hawaiians and other longtime Hawaii residents to leave the islands and move to the U.S. mainland.

The wildfire that claimed at least 97 lives and destroyed 2,200 buildings in the West Maui community of Lahaina — 86% of which were residential — amplifies that problem for the survivors.

A spike in housing costs would be a further burden for people — including retirees and those who worked in restaurants, hotels and shops — who lost their homes and jobs when their places of employment burned to the ground on Aug. 8, or when West Maui temporarily closed to tourism after the disaster.

At a news conference on Thursday at the state Capitol, Green stressed that the displaced survivors won’t be forced out of hotels to make room for tourists, with October typically being a slow month for tourism.

“Outsiders should not have the opportunity to grab land or properties because emotions are running high, so everyone is vulnerable,” Melody Lukela-Singh, whose home on Lahaina’s renowned Front Street burned, said recently.

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