After a grounded yacht damaged over 19,000 square feet of reef at Honolua Bay in 2023, a Maui Ocean Center team spent 26 months rehabilitating coral fragments and returned them to the bay in May 2025. The outplanting is part of broader reef-restoration efforts across Maui.
- In May 2025, divers outplanted 246 coral fragments at Honolua Bay, sourced from colonies damaged when the yacht Nakoa grounded there in February 2023.
- The grounding caused more than 19,000 square feet of coral and reef live rock damage at one of West Maui’s most popular marine sites.
- MOCMI’s land-based nursery at Māʻalaea Harbor kept the fragments alive for 26 months through daily cleaning, feeding, and care before replanting.
- The restored coral was placed in a 36-foot-wide zone near where the original colonies were collected, with survival determining long-term reef recovery.
- Honolua Bay is a popular snorkel and surf destination for visitors, making reef health directly relevant to West Maui’s tourism appeal.
Source: Mauimagazine
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