MAUI, Hawaii − Evacuations continued Thursday on the battered island of Maui where catastrophic blazes killed at least 36 people, damaged hundreds of structures and leveled a historic and beloved town in one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires in recent years.
Officials said more than 270 structures were damaged or destroyed including entire blocks of homes, businesses and a 200-year-old church in Lahaina Town in Maui, where blazes fueled by wind from passing Hurricane Dora were concentrated. On the Big Island, three wildfires were burning, though two of them were at least 60% contained.
The Maui Fire Department said it would conduct a damage assessment at first light Thursday.
Acting Gov. Sylvia Luke said residents had been preparing for the storm but “never anticipated” the hurricane could contribute to the quickly developing blazes.
President Joe Biden said in a statement he has ordered “all available federal assets” to help combat the wildfires, including Black Hawk helicopters provided by the Marines. The Coast Guard rescued 12 people from the waters off Lahaina as residents fled into the ocean to escape the flames and smoke.
Tourists and residents fleeing to safety
About 11,000 visitors flew out of Maui on Wednesday, and at least another 1,500 expected to leave Thursday, according to Ed Sniffen, state transportation director. The Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu was being prepared to accommodate up to 4,000 people displaced by the wildfires.
Evacuation efforts were complicated by power blackouts, a lack of cell service, the loss of 911 service and downed power lines in different parts of the islands.
Lahaina resident Jordan Saribay saw homes burst into flames “as tall as the buildings because they were engulfing them.’’ Debris turned into dangerous projectiles as people whose cars had run out of gas tried to flee while carrying their prized possessions, he said.
“While driving through the neighborhood, it looked like a war zone,’’ Saribay said. “Houses throughout that neighborhood were already on fire. I’m driving through the thickest black smoke, and I don’t know what’s on the other side or what’s in front of me.’’
What caused the Maui fires?
High winds and low humidity likely contributed to the fires, but officials know little else, said Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, commander general of the Hawaii Army National Guard, at a briefing Wednesday. Hurricane Dora, a Category 4 storm in the Pacific Ocean, fueled the strong winds overnight in Maui, with gusts of 60 mph damaging homes and knocking out power.
But some experts said they suspect human development on the island is at least partly to blame for the destruction.
Wildfires have quadrupled in Hawaii in recent decades, and many scientists say the culprit is unmanaged, non-native grasslands planted by plantations and ranchers and others unfamiliar with the island’s native ecosystems. The grass is dry and prone to fires.
“There is no doubt that fire-prone grasses have invaded drier Hawaiian ecosystems and brought larger, more intense fires,” said Peter Vitousek, a professor of earth sciences at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.
− Marc Ramirez
Maui death toll climbs
At least 36 people have died in the Lahaina fire in Hawaii, Maui County wrote in a statement posted to the county website Wednesday evening.
Six patients were flown from Maui to the island of Oahu on Tuesday night, said Speedy Bailey, regional director for the air-ambulance company Hawaii Life Flight. Three of them had critical burns and were taken to Straub Medical Center’s burn unit in Honolulu, he said. The others were taken to other Honolulu hospitals. At least 20 patients were taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center, said Bailey.
Maui fire map
Maui wildfire map: A look at how Hurricane Dora and low humidity are fueling Hawaii fires
Contributing: The Associated Press; Ashley Lewis, USA TODAY
