Wildfire roars through Hawaii’s historic Lahaina
The death toll from the devastating wildfires in Maui, Hawaii has reached 93 as more evacuations are underway in the western area of Kaanapali.
Officials say teams including cadaver-sniffing dogs have only covered 3 per cent of a search area and governor Josh Green has warned the death toll is likely to rise as those search operations continue to find more bodies.
The latest in a string of fires that have ravaged parts of the island triggered the evacuation of the community in Kaanapali on Friday night, the Maui Police Department announced on social media.
Officials believe the wildfires, which are now the country’s worst in terms of casualties in more than 100 years, could end up being the deadliest disaster in the state’s history. Earlier on Friday the authorities said 14,900 visitors left Maui by air the day before.
Many fire survivors said they did not hear any sirens or receive a warning giving them enough time to prepare, realising they were in danger only when they saw flames or heard explosions. Officials sent alerts to mobile phones, televisions and radio stations, but widespread power and cellular outages may have limited their reach.
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Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 10:00
Death toll from Hawaii wildfires reaches 93
The death toll from the devastating wildfires in Hawaii has reached 93.
Maui County announced the updated fatality figures for its island on Sunday morning.
Tara Cobham13 August 2023 09:45
Jason Momoa issues stern warning to holidaymakers travelling to Maui
Jason Momoa has issued a stern message to holidaymakers hoping to still travel to Maui amid the fatal wildfires.
Two days after sharing his “heartbreak” about the wildfires that have devastated the Hawaiian island, Momoa shared a post stating: “Maui is not the place to have your vacation right now. DO NOT TRAVEL TO MAUI.”
Jacob Stolworthy reports.
Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 09:00
Stevie Nicks shares moving tribute to Hawaii town turned to ashes by wildfires
Fleetwood Mac singer Stevie Nicks has posted a lengthy tribute on Instagram to Lahaina, the Maui town worst-affected by the ongoing wildfires.
Nicks wrote that she owns a house on Maui a short distance from the town, and called Lahaina “the most magical place on earth”.
She captioned the tribute: “Lahaina is not gone ~ It is just away.”
Adam Withnall13 August 2023 08:15
Hawaii newlyweds detail ‘heartbreaking’ escape from Maui wildfires
A newlywed couple who were married in Hawaii have detailed their “heartbreaking” escape from Maui wildfires. Cindy and Bob Curler hadn’t envisioned spending their wedding night sharing a sofa in a garage, but that’s what happened when they were unable to get back to their Lahaina hotel on Tuesday 8 August, as wildfires swallowed the town. Their driver was forced to take them to the site where he parks his limousine, with Cindy still in her strapless lace gown, and Bob in his crisp blue suit. “We’re more heartbroken to see what the town is like and what the locals are dealing with,” Cindy said after the experience. “Yes, it was our wedding day and night, but that’s only one night for us where these people are impacted for the rest of their lives.”
Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 08:00
Scale of wildfire scarring on charred Maui land captured in aerial footage
Drone video shows the devastating aftermath of wildfires that ravaged the island of Maui. Large patches of land in the area of Olinda were charred black and brown, while burnt trees remained standing as smoke loomed overhead. Maui County officials confirmed Friday afternoon (11 August) that the death toll from the Hawaii wildfires had increased to 67. The blazes are the state’s deadliest natural disaster in decades, surpassing a 1960 tsunami that killed 61 people. Fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, at least three wildfires erupted on Maui this week, racing through parched brush covering the island.
Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 07:00
Counting deaths and cost of wildfires ‘still in early stages’
Efforts to assess the full impact of the wildfires to Hawaii are still in their early stages, officials there warned on Saturday, even as the death toll rose to 89.
The fire that razed the historic Maui town of Lahaina is already the deadliest in the US for more than a century.
Crews with cadaver dogs have covered just 3 per cent of the search area, Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said. “We’ve got an area that we have to contain that is at least 5 square miles and it is full of our loved ones. And we’ve got 89 so far. Today we identified two,” noting that the death toll is likely to grow and “none of us really know the size of it yet.” He spoke as federal emergency workers picked through an ashen moonscape left by the fire. Teams marked the ruins of homes in Lahaina with a bright orange X for an initial search and HR when they found human remains.
Wildfire damage is shown, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii
(AP)
Pelletier said that identifying the dead is extremely challenging because “we pick up the remains and they fall apart… When we find our family and our friends, the remains that we’re finding is through a fire that melted metal”. Dogs worked the rubble, and their occasional bark — used to alert their handlers to a possible corpse — echoed over the hot and colorless landscape. “It will certainly be the worst natural disaster that Hawaii ever faced,” Governor Josh Green remarked Saturday as he toured the devastation on historic Front Street.
“We can only wait and support those who are living. Our focus now is to reunite people when we can and get them housing and get them health care, and then turn to rebuilding.”
Adam Withnall13 August 2023 05:38
Maui wildfires death toll rises as rebuild cost put at $6bn
Read the latest updates from Maui.
Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 05:00
Death toll hits 89, making it the deadliest wildfire for a century in US
The death toll from the Hawaii wildfires now stands at 89, governor Josh Green has said.
It makes it the deadliest wildfire in the US for more than 100 years, surpassing the toll of the 2018 Camp Fire in northern California, which left 85 dead.
A century earlier, the 1918 Cloquet Fire broke out in drought-stricken northern Minnesota and raced through a number of rural communities, destroying thousands of homes and killing hundreds. At least two other fires have been burning in Maui, with no fatalities reported thus far: in south Maui’s Kihei area and in the mountainous, inland communities known as Upcountry. A fourth broke out Friday evening in Kaanapali, a coastal community in West Maui north of Lahaina, but crews were able to extinguish it, authorities said.
Adam Withnall13 August 2023 03:43
King and Queen ‘utterly horrified’ by Hawaii wildfires
The King has written a letter to US President Joe Biden saying he and the Queen were “utterly horrified” to hear about the “catastrophic” wildfires in Hawaii.
Oliver O’Connell13 August 2023 03:00
