Burnt out cars line the sea wall after the wildfire on Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii.
Rick Bowmer | AP
Catastrophic wildfires have ravaged Hawaii, resulting in numerous casualties, displacing thousands of residents, and reducing a historic town to ashes. The governor has described this event as the most severe natural disaster in the state’s history.
This week, the wildfire rapidly spread across Maui, the second-largest island in Hawaii, fueled by drought conditions, strong winds, and the impact of Hurricane Dora. Maui County officials have reported a death toll of 67, with the historic city of Lahaina completely destroyed.
During a press conference, Governor Josh Green delivered a somber assessment of the damage caused by the fires, referring to the scene in Lahaina as “utter devastation.” He emphasized that this disaster is likely the largest in the history of Hawaii.
With the loss of Lahaina, the island experiences a profound blow to its cultural heritage. Once the capital of Hawaii during the 19th century, Lahaina held great significance as the center of power in the independent kingdom that ruled the islands.
Senator Brian Schatz expressed his heartbreak on social media, stating, “It’s absolutely heartbreaking. The recovery process will be long, but we’re committed to these families and communities.”
As of Thursday morning, the fire in Lahaina was 80% contained, according to Maui County officials.
Wildfire wreckage is shown Aug. 10, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. The search of the wildfire wreckage on the Hawaiian island of Maui revealed a wasteland of burned-out homes and obliterated communities as firefighters battled the stubborn blaze, making it the deadliest in the U.S. in recent years.
Rick Bowmer | AP
Recovering from the fires will take many years for Lahaina, as hundreds of homes have been destroyed and thousands of people are in need of shelter, as stated by Governor Green. He emphasized that the extent of destruction in Lahaina would be shocking, and the town would essentially need to be rebuilt from scratch.
When asked about the state’s preparations for such a catastrophic wildfire scenario, Governor Green acknowledged the challenges posed by climate change, which has led to extreme weather conditions. He also mentioned the lack of resources, such as personnel and helicopters, in Hawaii.
President Joe Biden declared a major disaster in Hawaii, promising immediate federal assistance to the victims. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator, Deanne Criswell, will visit Maui to coordinate the response efforts. However, she acknowledged that the remote and isolated nature of the island presents additional challenges.
Volunteers stack canned goods at War Memorial Stadium in Kahului, Hawaii on August 10, 2023.
Mengshin Lin | The Washington Post | Getty Images
FEMA Administrator Criswell emphasized the need for close collaboration with the governor and his team to provide immediate shelter and long-term temporary housing until the town is rebuilt. The government will offer reimbursement, cash assistance, crisis counseling, and disaster unemployment assistance to support the recovery process.
The current focus is on saving lives, and FEMA has deployed search and rescue teams to locate missing individuals. They are also providing communications equipment to address the communication outages that have occurred.
Correction: This story was updated to reflect that King Kamehameha I established Lahaina as his royal residence in the early 19th century as he unified the islands into a single state. A previous version misstated the timeline of those events.
Denial of responsibility! VigourTimes is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
