Wildfires in Hawaii: In the dead of night on Wednesday, a wildfire tore through the center of the Hawaiian island of Maui, destroying parts of a historic town and prompting residents to jump into the water to escape the flames. Numerous people were hurt, 271 structures were damaged or destroyed, and at least six individuals killed.
As Hurricane Dora passed far south of the Hawaiian islands on Wednesday afternoon, the fires raged on. This fuel came from the hurricane’s powerful winds. Officials worried that the death toll would increase.
Richard Bissen, the mayor of Maui, said, “Today is a deeply depressing day.” “The awful gravity of losing any life. We pray for consolation in this terrible time as we mourn alongside their families.
Some aircraft started flying again as the winds started to die down, allowing pilots to see the full extent of the destruction. U.S. Civil Air Patrol and Maui Fire Department flyovers over the seaside town of Lahaina revealed the scale of the loss, according to Mahina Martin, a spokeswoman for Maui County.
Although the exact origin of the fire couldn’t be identified, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, adjutant general of the Hawaii State Department of Defence, indicated that a number of factors—including strong winds, low humidity, and dry vegetation—likely played a role. Additionally, experts claimed that climate change is making more extreme weather more likely.
Aerial footage from Lahaina showed scores of homes and businesses destroyed, including those on Front Street, where visitors gathered to eat and shop. The harbour was filled with burned-out boats, and leafless skeletons of charred trees were surrounded by high piles of smoking wreckage.
Fires killed six people on Maui, but search and rescue operations continued and the number could rise.
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