Hawaii Wildfires Kill at Least 55, Recovery to Take Years

2023-08-12

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1
  • Wildfires on Hawaii's island of Maui have killed at least 55 people and destroyed a historic town, officials said.
  • 2
  • The number of deaths is expected to rise even higher.
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  • Officials said it will take years to rebuild Lahaina, the one-time capital of the former kingdom of Hawaii.
  • 4
  • Governor Josh Green said the fire was the worst natural disaster in the state's history, making thousands of people homeless and burning as many as 1,000 buildings.
  • 5
  • In 1960, a tsunami killed 61 people in the state.
  • 6
  • "It's going to take many years to rebuild Lahaina," Green said at a Thursday news conference.
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  • Lahaina was once the home of King Kamehameha, who united Hawaii under a single kingdom.
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  • Kings and queens are buried on the grounds of the 200-year-old stone Waiola Church, one of burned sites.
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  • Lahaina draws 2 million visitors each year, or about 80 percent of the island's visitors.
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  • Fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, at least three wildfires burned on Maui this week.
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  • Maui Fire Department Chief Brad Ventura said one fire moved so fast that it was impossible to warn people of the emergency.
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  • "What we experienced was such a fast-moving fire ... they were basically self-evacuating with fairly little notice," Ventura told the Associated Press.
  • 13
  • Thousands of visitors and locals were evacuated from the western side of Maui, which has a year-round population of about 166,000.
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  • Locals sheltered on the island or the neighboring island of Oahu.
  • 15
  • And visitors gathered in Kahului Airport, waiting for flights back home.
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  • Some people fled the immediate danger by jumping into the Pacific Ocean.
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  • Among them was Vixay Phonxaylinkham, a visitor from Fresno, California.
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  • He said his family was trapped in a car as the fires neared, forcing the family to jump in the water.
  • 19
  • They held onto pieces of wood to stay above water.
  • 20
  • "We floated around for four hours," the man told Reuters from an emergency shelter.
  • 21
  • "It was a vacation that turned into a nightmare. I heard explosions everywhere, I heard screaming, and some people didn't make it. I feel so sad," he said.
  • 22
  • Many survivors suffered burns and other injuries.
  • 23
  • "It was so hot all around me, I felt like my shirt was about to catch fire," said Nicoangelo Knickerbocker, a 21-year-old from Lahaina.
  • 24
  • Knickerbocker heard cars and a gas station explode.
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  • He fled from the town with his father and the family dog.
  • 26
  • "It sounded like a war was going on," he said.
  • 27
  • Officials said Thursday that they have contained about 80 percent of the Lahaina fire.
  • 28
  • There was no immediate estimate for others. However, experts say the fires are likely to change Hawaii in unwanted ways.
  • 29
  • They include a threat to coral reefs, drinking water, and its soil.
  • 30
  • Wildfires, often caused by record-setting heat, have become more common around the world this summer.
  • 31
  • They forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people in Greece, Spain, Portugal and other parts of Europe.
  • 32
  • In western Canada, several unusually severe fires sent clouds of smoke over a large part of the United States, polluting the air.
  • 33
  • I'm Dan Friedell.