Hawaii has secured federal disaster money after Hurricane Lala, which is good news for storm-hit residents on the Big Island but points to a long, expensive rebuild.

• A presidential emergency declaration will cover 75% of repair costs, on top of $100 million the state legislature set aside from its hurricane fund.
• Damage already tops $81 million in public needs, with hundreds of properties needing individual help — and the total is expected to climb into the hundreds of millions.
• Power is back for most of the 200,000 people who lost it, but water systems, roads, and rural areas around Pahoa and Naalehu will take far longer; full power restoration is targeted for early September.
• National Guard troops, active military transport planes, and heavy equipment brought in from California are clearing debris — 100,000 tons hauled off so far.
• Green wants HECO to take on outside energy partners, floating a Japanese LNG firm that could bring billions in capital to harden the grid, and is pushing for a second deep-water harbor so the state is not dependent on Honolulu Harbor.

Outlook: A major disaster declaration covering Oahu and Maui is expected next, while the fight over bringing new partners into Hawaii's power grid is just beginning.