The toll of lives lost in the Maui wildfires in Hawaii has tragically risen to 93, marking this event as the most fatal U.S. wildfire in the past century. The count is anticipated to climb further as search efforts by cadaver dogs continue through the remains of Lahaina.
The extent of the devastation became clearer four days subsequent to a swiftly spreading inferno that razed the historic resort town, erasing structures and liquefying vehicles.
Estimates from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) project a reconstruction cost of $5.5 billion for Lahaina. The destructive blaze caused damage to over 2,200 buildings and the destruction of more than 2,100 acres (850 hectares).
Governor Josh Green of Hawaii cautioned during a press briefing on Saturday that the death toll would persistently rise as additional victims are uncovered. Only a mere 3% of the search area has been covered by body-detection dogs, informed Maui County Police Chief John Pelletier.
In light of concerns from residents regarding the adequacy of pre-fire warnings, authorities pledged to scrutinize the state’s emergency notification systems. Some individuals were compelled to enter the Pacific Ocean to evade the flames as sirens, designed to forewarn of impending calamities, remained silent, and prevalent power and cellular disruptions hindered alternative alert methods.
State attorney general Anne Lopez disclosed her initiation of a review into the decisions taken both before and during the fire. Governor Green, speaking to CNN, confirmed his authorization for an assessment of the emergency response.
The narrative presented by officials outlines a nightmarish convergence of factors, encompassing failures in communication networks, gusts of wind reaching 80 miles per hour (130 kph) from an offshore hurricane, and a separate wildfire occurring dozens of miles away. These elements rendered real-time coordination with the customary emergency management agency, responsible for issuing alerts and evacuation directives, nearly impracticable.
This death toll designates the eruption on Tuesday as Hawaii’s most catastrophic natural disaster, surpassing a tsunami that claimed 61 lives in 1960, the year Hawaii became a U.S. state.
This updated figure surpasses the 85 casualties resulting from a 2018 fire in the town of Paradise, California, marking the highest wildfire death toll since 1918, when the Cloquet fire in Minnesota and Wisconsin caused 453 fatalities.
