2023-08-14 13:42:15
He Governor of Hawaii, Josh Greendescribed Sunday as a “zone of war” the part of the island of Maui devastated by forest fires, while the death toll rose to 93 and was expected to continue to rise. A rapidly spreading fire engulfed the northwest coast of Maui Tuesday, ripping through the historic resort town of Lahaina and destroying almost everything in its path.
Days following the inferno, fire crews continued to battle the blazes and dogs searched the charred ruins of the city for victims, as survivors and authorities grappled with the magnitude of the disaster.
“Right now, we’re still in the acute phase of this recovery, which means we’re still reeling from the tragic loss of life,” Green said. “We’re at 93 (casualties) now…it’s a war zone, but the help is unbelievable,” she added.
Green, who warned on Saturday that the death toll would rise, recommitted to investigating the response to the fire and emergency notification systems following some residents questioned whether more might have been done to notify them before their houses were destroyed. Some people were forced to wade through the Pacific Ocean to escape, Archyde.com reported.
The sirens placed around the island—intended to warn of impending natural catastrophes—never sounded. Widespread power and mobile phone outages made other forms of alerting difficult. “We’ll soon find out if they did enough to get those sirens going,” he added.
“Too sober”
The death toll made the fire the worst natural disaster in Hawaii. Thus surpassing a tsunami that killed 61 people in 1960, a year following Hawaii became a US state. The death toll also exceeded that of the 2018 fire in the Californian town of Paradise, in which 86 people died.
Officials began allowing West Maui residents to return Friday, though the Lahaina fire area remained closed. The governor said the area is a dangerous place due to the toxicity of the smoking ruins. Hundreds of people were still missing, though the exact count was unclear.
It was “too bleak” a scene in Lahaina following the natural disaster, Green said Sunday. “When we try to pick up and hug those we’ve lost, there’s pretty much nothing,” she added. The condition of the bodies might complicate identification efforts, with only two victims identified as of Saturday, Maui County officials said.
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