Wildfires have killed at least 36 people on Maui and devastated Lahaina Town, one of Hawaii's most historic cities. Here's what to know.
Wildfires aren’t unusual in Hawaii, but the weather of the past few weeks created the fuel for a devastating blaze and, once ignited, the high winds created the disaster, said Thomas Smith an associate professor in Environmental Geography at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
As winds eased somewhat on Maui on Wednesday, pilots were able to view the full scope of the devastation. Aerial video from Lahaina showed dozens of homes and businesses razed, including on Front Street, where tourists once gathered to shop and dine. Smoking heaps of rubble lay piled high next to the waterfront, boats in the harbor were scorched, and gray smoke hovered over the leafless skeletons of charred trees.
Search-and-rescue teams are fanning out in the devastated areas in the hopes of finding survivors, Adam Weintraub, communication director for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” Tiare Lawrence was frantically trying to reach her siblings who live near where a gas station exploded in Lahaina.Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, from the Hawaii State Department of Defense, told reporters Wednesday night that officials were working to get communications restored, to distribute water, and possibly adding law enforcement personnel. He said National Guard helicopters had dropped 150,000 gallons of water on the Maui fires.
“Our prayers are with those who have seen their homes, businesses and communities destroyed,” Biden said in a statement.
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