The wildfires are the state's deadliest natural disaster in decades, surpassing a 1960 tsunami that killed 61 people. 9News
that swept through a picturesque town on the Hawaiian island of Maui this week has killed at least 89 people, authorities say, making it the deadliest US wildfire of the past century.
"It will certainly be the worst natural disaster that Hawaii ever faced. ... We can only wait and support those who are living. Our focus now is to reunite people when we can and get them housing and get them health care, and then turn to rebuilding.” At least two other fires have been burning in Maui, with no fatalities reported thus far: in south Maui’s Kihei area and in the mountainous, inland communities known as Upcountry.
Retired fire captain Geoff Bogar and his friend of 35 years, Franklin Trejos, initially stayed behind to help others in Lahaina and save Bogar's house.Each escaped to his own car. Riding in winds he estimated to be at least 112kms/ph, he passed a man on a bicycle who was pedaling for his life.Neighbourhoods obliterated by fires in historic Hawaiian townThe newly released death toll surpassed the toll of the 2018 Camp Fire in northern California, which left 85 dead and destroyed the town of Paradise.
Hawaii emergency management records do not indicate the warning sirens sounded before fire hit the town.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Death toll of Maui wildfires rises to 80 as survivors begin returning to communities in ruinsSurvivors witnessed a surreal landscape of flattened homes, blackened hulks of burned-out cars and ashy lots where buildings once stood as they took stock of their shattered lives.
Read more »
Death toll from Maui fires rises, as damages bill forecast to top $8 billionThe scale of the damage came into sharper focus as search teams with cadaver dogs sifted through the ruins of the historic resort town of Lahaina.
Read more »
Search for bodies begins after Maui wildfire, amid questions about whether residents received warningCadaver dogs from California and Washington state are expected to arrive today to help with recovering human remains from the ruins, as firefighters work to extinguish hot spots and smaller fires.
Read more »
How did the Maui fire start and what do we know about the Lahaina blaze?Maui's deadly wildfires have unleashed destruction on the Hawaiian resort town of Lahaina that will take many years and billions of dollars to rebuild.
Read more »