The Hawaii fire is the deadliest in the United States since the Camp Fire in California, which killed 85 people in 2018.
Lahaina’s population prior to the fire was approximately 13,000. Now it is almost eliminated.
The death toll from wildfires ravaging a town in Hawaii has risen to 53.
The number may be higher. That’s what the state’s governor, Josh Green, says.
People from all over the world are trying to contact people they know on the island and hundreds of people are missing. He writes USA Today Friday.
The town of Lahaina in the west of Maui, the second largest island in the archipelago, has been hit by a violent wildfire.
Lahaina is home to about 13,000 people and a popular tourist destination. The city was the capital of Hawaii in the 19th century and has many historic buildings from that time.
People jump into the sea
The fire forced many to evacuate. From the island’s airport, people were evacuated by school buses.
There are reports of people having to jump into the sea to escape the flames and smoke:
The US Coast Guard states that sailors rescued 17 people from the water after people jumped into the Pacific Ocean to escape a raging wildfire. They found 40 survivors on the ground.” New York times.
Widespread power outages and loss of mobile phone signal have also been reported.
People were evacuated from Maui Airport on Thursday, August 10.
The flames of the forest fire reached the popular streets of the city and destroyed shops, hotels and restaurants.
Modest homes and apartments, where many of the workers who run Maui’s thriving tourism industry, live, were also destroyed.
“When I arrived at Lahaina this afternoon, I was met with a sight of devastation,” wrote the New York Times reporter on the island on Thursday, August 10.
“The only sign of life is that some birds are sitting on the charred tops of the trees,” he continued.
Historic disaster
Hawaii has experienced wildfires before, but nothing like this, he writes BBC Friday morning.
Governor Josh Green called the fire likely “the greatest disaster in the history of the state.”
Authorities expect the fire to be the deadliest natural disaster in Hawaii since 1960, when a tsunami claimed 61 lives on the Big Island.
Lahaina, Hawaii, Wednesday, August 9, after the deadliest fire in the United States since 2018.
The cause of the fires is still uncertain.
The authorities highlighted a range of factors that made the situation worse.
First, the abnormally dry conditions in much of Hawaii, including the entire island of Maui, played a role.
Furthermore, Dora’s winds and dry weather also fueled the flames.
Authorities believe these are conditions exacerbated by climate change.
US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that he has given federal aid:
– I have asked for help from all available federal resources on the islands.
Lahaina, Hawaii Thursday, August 10.
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