2023-08-12 12:44:00
After the severe forest and bush fires in Hawaii, more and more dead are being recovered from the rubble. The number of victims has since risen to 80. Residents complain that warnings regarding the fires were not given or came too late.
More and more dead people are being recovered from the completely charred buildings on the Hawaiian island of Maui. According to official information in the district, the number of victims has increased to 80 – in a previous balance sheet there had been at least 67 deaths. It’s a sad record, the fires are now considered the deadliest natural disaster in Hawaii’s history, according to authorities.
Numerous people are still missing. Hawaii Governor Josh Green told CNN that he expected more deaths. It might take up to a week for the rescue workers to work their way through the rubble and ash in all affected locations. Dogs are also used to salvage dead bodies. The hospitals are also treating people with serious injuries.
80 percent of the historic city of Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui has apparently been destroyed.
Clashes between residents and police
The fire in western Mauiis around the town of Kaanapali near a gas station is now under control, the authorities said. Hundreds of vehicles were waiting there to be refueled when a forest fire flared up once more yesterday.
Firefighting operations are ongoing in the area between Pulehu and Kihei, as well as inland and in the historic town of Lahaina. Green said the flames destroyed 80 percent of the city.
It certainly feels like a bomb dropped on Lahaina.
Josh Green, Governor of Hawaii
The first residents were initially able to return to their houses and apartments. According to media reports, a few hours following the road was released, the police closed the highway access to Lahaina once more. The reason for this was disputes between residents and the police over access to areas that were still closed.
People had apparently tried to reach relatives in these zones, some on foot, as the district administration explained. This would put them in danger and also delay the rescue work, since the emergency services would have to interrupt the search for victims and instead send unauthorized persons away.
Apparently not all warning sirens activated
There are increasing questions as to whether people were adequately warned of the disaster. No warning sirens were activated when the fire broke out, according to a representative of the emergency services. Green announced there would be an investigation into this. Warnings regarding cell phone apps, radio and TV stations were spread. The rapidly spreading flames partially destroyed telecommunications lines used for warning sirens, Green said.
Helicopters, which were supposed to contain the flames at the beginning, might not take off because of the strong wind, the governor said. “This does not serve as an apology for anyone and we will look into that,” he added.
“They underestimated the deadly danger”
Representative Jill Tokuda, who represents Hawaii’s second district in the US House of Representatives, told CNN that authorities “underestimated the deadly danger and speed of the fire.” There have been emergency alerts via cellphones, but some regions have had no cellphone coverage, Tokuda said.
“It’s not like hurricane-force winds are unheard of in Hawaii,” the MP said. “We didn’t learn our lesson from Hurricane Lane in 2018 – that bushfires can erupt as a result of churning hurricane winds,” Tokuda said. “We have to make sure we pay more attention here.”
Attorney General announces investigation
As Hurricane Lane approached Hawaii in 2018, the ensuing Maui bushfires burned a total of 8.5 square miles, CNN reports. In the following year, fires on Maui destroyed regarding 250 square kilometers of land, and yet in a report last year the Hawaii disaster protection agency described earthquakes and tsunamis as the main dangers for the population. The risk of forest fires for humans was classified as “low”.
Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez announced an investigation into decisions and policies related to the fires. There will be a “comprehensive review” of the decisions made by the authorities “before, during and following the wildfires on the islands of Maui and Hawaii,” her office said.
Some people had to leave their cars behind to escape from the flames by jumping into the water.
Thousands of people have become homeless
Large fires break out in parts of the Hawaiian archipelago almost every year, according to the University of Hawaii, but the scale of these fires is unusual. According to preliminary information from the Maui authorities, an area of 21.7 square kilometers burned. For comparison, the area roughly corresponds to that of Frankfurt Airport. 2,719 buildings have burned down so far – 86 percent of them residential buildings.
The reconstruction of Lahaina and the infrastructure will probably take years, the economic damage might be in the billions – also because tourism will probably be restricted in the coming weeks and months. The Hawaiian Islands had up to ten million visitors in peak years.
With information from Nils Dampz, ARD Studio San Francisco, and Katharina Wilhelm, ARD Studio Los Angeles.
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