The official death toll from the wildfires on Hawaii’s Maui Island has risen to 55 as of early Friday.
Dozens of people have been injured, some critically. It is the state’s deadliest natural disaster since a 1960 tsunami killed 61 people on the Big Island.
The fire was 80 percent contained as of Thursday, according to a Maui County news release.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said the death toll could likely rise amid ongoing search and rescue operations. “We are heartsick,” he said.
Rescuers are still searching through parts of the island that had been inaccessible due to the three ongoing fires, including the one in Lahaina, a resort city on Maui and the largest tourist destination on the northwest coast of Maui.
“Lahaina, with a few rare exceptions, has been burned down,” Mr. Green said, adding that more than 1,000 structures were destroyed by fires that were still burning.
“We are still in life preservation mode. Search and rescue is still a primary concern,” said Adam Weintraub, a spokesperson for Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.
One of the largest banyan trees in the United States was destroyed in the fires.
For 150 years, the massive tree that stretched an entire city block provided shade for community events and protected locals and tourists from the Hawaiian sun. It stood more than 60 feet tall, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority.
The wildfires started on Tuesday and took island residents by surprise, with many survivors having to flee with just the clothes on their backs.
The fire was fueled by dry conditions and strong winds from Hurricane Dora passing far south of Hawaii.
While some neighborhoods in Lahaina, a centuries-old town, were being destroyed by the fires, adults and children jumped into the water to escape the flames. The Coast Guard said it rescued at least 14 people who jumped into the water to escape, including two children.
“Maui can’t handle this. ... A lot of people just lost their jobs because a lot of businesses burned. A lot of people lost their homes. ... This is going to be devastating for Maui,” Alan Dickar, a business owner, told CBS News.
Others who escaped the disaster termed the scenario “apocalyptic.”
On Aug. 9, a flyover of Lahaina by the U.S. Civil Air Patrol and Maui Fire Department showed more than 271 structures had been impacted.
“Widespread damage to the West Maui town, the harbor and surrounding areas are being documented,” a press release stated at the time.
Mass Evacuations
A mass evacuation was held in Lahaina and Maui on Aug. 9.Officials have listed locations where potable water tankers were available and warned that people in Kula may experience low to no water pressure as “high winds and fires have damaged power lines to several of the pumping facilities.”
Authorities ordered motorists not to enter Lahaina during the active fire, “but people already in Lahaina may exit via Kahakuloa.”
“Maui police are stationed at Ma’alaea and at Waihee to prevent entry into Lahaina until the area is secure. Only Kahakuloa residents may access Kahakuloa via Waihee,” the directive continued. “West Maui remains without power and has no landline or cellphone service.”
State general revenue funds will be made available for relief activities that result from Hurricane Dora. The emergency declaration was approved by Matthew S. Dvoch, the acting attorney general for the state.
In an Aug. 8 statement, Hawaiian Electric advised people to assume that any downed power line is energized and dangerous and to stay at least 30 feet away from them.
“Use extreme caution when driving. Power interruptions may cause traffic signals to stop working without warning. If you come to an intersection with a non-working traffic signal, treat it as a four-way stop,” it stated.
Personal Tragedies
Lahaina residents Kamuela Kawaakoa and Iiulia Yasso described a harrowing escape from under smoke-filled skies on the afternoon of Aug. 8. The couple and their 6-year-old son grabbed a change of clothes and ran as bushes around them caught fire.“We barely made it out in time,” Mr. Kawaakoa said at an evacuation shelter on Aug. 9. He was unsure if anything was left of their apartment.
As Mr. Kawaakoa and Ms. Yasso fled, a senior center erupted in flames. They called 911, but didn’t know if the people got out. Fire alarms blared. As they drove away, downed utility poles and fleeing cars slowed their progress.
Mr. Kawaakoa, 34, grew up in the apartment building, called Lahaina Surf, where his dad and grandmother also lived. Lahaina Town dates back to the 1700s and has long been a favorite destination for tourists.
“It was so hard to sit there and just watch my town burn to ashes and not be able to do anything,” Mr. Kawaakoa said. “I was helpless.”
As winds eased somewhat on Maui, some flights resumed Aug. 9, allowing pilots to view the full scope of the devastation.
An aerial view of Lahaina revealed once-colorful and lively neighborhoods now turned to grey ashes. Successive blocks displayed only debris and charred bases, especially along the well-known Front Street, frequented by tourists merely days prior. The harbor’s boats bore burn marks, and a smoky haze loomed over the town.
“It’s horrifying. I’ve flown here 52 years, and I’ve never seen anything come close to that,” said Richard Olsten, a helicopter pilot for a tour company. “We had tears in our eyes.”
State Department of Education Superintendent Keith Hayashi said in a statement on Aug. 9 that a team was working on contingency plans and preparing for the possible loss of an elementary school that had been in Lahaina for more than a century.
“Unofficial aerial photos show the King Kamehameha III Elementary campus—on Front Street in Lahaina—sustained extensive fire and structural damage,” he said. “The department is striving to maintain regular school schedules to provide a sense of normalcy but will keep most Maui schools closed for the remainder of this week,” he said.
More than 2,100 people on Aug. 8 spent the night in evacuation centers. Another 2,000 travelers sheltered at Kahului Airport after many flights were canceled. Officials were preparing the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu to take in thousands of displaced tourists and locals.
Mauro Farinelli of Lahaina said the winds had started blowing hard on Aug. 8, and then somehow a fire had started up on a hillside. “It just ripped through everything with amazing speed,” he said, adding it was “like a blowtorch.”
The winds were so strong they blew his garage door off its hinges and trapped his car in the garage, Mr. Farinelli said. So a friend drove him, along with his wife Judit and dog Susi, to an evacuation shelter.
He had no idea what had happened to their home. “We’re hoping for the best,” he said, “but we’re pretty sure it’s gone.”
