Residents plead for help as Hawaii works to rebuild after wildfires
As of Saturday morning, the wildfire disaster in Hawaii is the second-deadliest wildfire event in modern U.S. history. The deadliest wildfire event was the Camp Fire in California 2018, which led to 88 fatalities.
Residents plead for help as Hawaii works to rebuild after wildfires
The majority of the historic town of Lahaina was destroyed after wildfires blazed through the island of Maui this week. Rescue and recovery efforts continue in Hawaii as death toll rises to 80. August 12, 2023.
LAHAINA, Hawaii – At least 93 people are confirmed dead and at least 1,000 people are still missing after wildfires burned through parts of Hawaii this week.
Rescue crews are searching through the rubble for more victims, as the death count is expected to rise.
Thousands of people have left the island of Maui, where the historic town of Lahaina was decimated, and about 1,400 are currently staying in emergency shelters. According to the property data aggregator CoreLogic, the number of homes lost now stands at more than 3,000.
Maui resident John Rey Serrano reacts while looking from a road above Lahaina Town in the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, western Maui, Hawaii on August 11, 2023.
(Patrick T. Fallon / AFP / Getty Images)
"I want people to know that there are people out here suffering," Lahaina resident Bryce Baraoidan said to FOX Weather correspondent Max Gorden. "We need donations. We need people shipping things out here. We need families fed. We need – yeah, we need so much help."
HAWAII DEATH TOLL HITS 93 AND IS EXPECTED TO RISE, MAKING IT DEADLIEST US WILDFIRE IN OVER 100 YEARS
The deadly fires began earlier this week. While the cause is still unknown, the conditions were ripe for an inferno. Parts of Maui were already experiencing extremely dry conditions, and combined with 70 to 80 mph wind gusts caused in part by Hurricane Dora passing south of Hawaii, the stage was set for a disaster.
Residents say they were given little warning of the approaching blaze, and that the island’s emergency sirens didn’t go off. Instead, texts were being sent out.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green and government officials gathered on Maui to survey wildfire damage and support affected individuals.
(Courtesy Office of the Governor of Hawai'i / FOX Weather)
"This crisis is far from over," former Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard said. "There's so much frustration. There's so much suffering."
"The real mourning has not even been able to begin to start because of people really looking to ‘How do I just get me and my family to tomorrow?’," she added.
Power and cell service are starting to be restored on the island’s west side. However, officials say that another part of the infrastructure, access to clean water, is now compromised as the fires have contaminated the water.
Noe Lopes sits with her granddaughter Leilani and great granddaughter Kawehi as the sun sets on their third day of waiting to return home near Lahaina. They and other evacuees camped in a parking lot along the Honoapiilani Highway, hoping to be allowed back into Lahaina, two days after a devastating wildfire tore through the community. August 10, 2023
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times / Getty Images)
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green announced that in the coming days, the Hawaii Fire Relief Housing Program will be launched so people can seek shelter in areas such as hotel rooms and Airbnbs.
As of Saturday morning, the wildfire disaster in Hawaii is the second-deadliest wildfire event in modern U.S. history. The deadliest wildfire event was the Camp Fire in California 2018, which led to 88 fatalities.
FOX PARTNERS WITH THE AMERICAN RED CROSS TO HELP HAWAII WILDFIRE VICTIMS
To help rescue and recovery efforts in Hawaii, donations can be made online at the Red Cross website and by texting "HAWAII" to 90999 to make a $10 donation.