Tsunami Warning Sparks Backlash Against Major Star in Hawaii originally appeared on Parade.
Oprah Winfrey’s team is pushing back against claims that residents in Maui were denied access to a private road on her property as they tried to evacuate during a recent tsunami warning.
The road in question apparently cuts through Winfrey’s estate and connects the coastal area of Wailea to Kula, a higher-elevation region inland. According to local social media chatter, some residents said the route remained blocked as tsunami alerts were issued across Hawaii following an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula — the strongest recorded in the region since 1952.
One X user named Nick Sortor shared a video along with a post that read, “Oprah HAS NOT opened her private road from Wailea to Kula, Hawaii, which would allow coastal folks to reach higher ground quickly, locals tell me.”
“Why ON EARTH would you choose to not open your own private road that would allow people to get to higher ground safely?” one person responded.
Another argued, “Why didn’t the state have exit plans instead of people begging Oprah?”
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In response to the online backlash, a spokesperson for the media mogul issued a statement denying that the road was ever closed off to the public. “As soon as we heard the tsunami warnings, we contacted local law enforcement and FEMA to ensure the road was opened. Any reports otherwise are false,” the statement said. The Maui Police Department appeared to corroborate the claim, posting its own update assuring the public that “Oprah’s road is open to get Upcountry.”
Sortor updated his post a few hours later with the positive news. “BREAKING: Following INTENSE public pressure, Oprah’s private road has been OPENED to those escaping the tsunami.”
As for the tsunami warnings which initially triggered emergency responses across Hawaii and other Pacific islands — those have since been downgraded to advisories at this time.
Tsunami Warning Sparks Backlash Against Major Star in Hawaii first appeared on Parade on Jul 30, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.
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