Officials say it could take years — or longer — to repair the damage from this week’s wildfires that devastated parts of Maui, claimed dozens of lives and razed a historic town.
Officials say it could take years — or longer — to repair the damage from this week’s wildfires that devastated parts of Maui, claimed dozens of lives and razed a historic town.
That acknowledgement came as the death toll on Maui was raised to at least 55 people. Hawaii Gov. Josh Green warned at a news conference that the death toll will rise, as rescuers reach parts of the island that had been inaccessible due to the three ongoing fires.
“We are seeing loss of life,” Green said. “As you know, the number has been rising and we will continue to see loss of life.” He said that the fires were the “greatest emergency we’ve seen in decades.”
Green said many hundreds of homes were destroyed and that thousands of people would need to find places to stay. He called on people around the state to take in displaced residents from west Maui if they had the room to accommodate them.
Officials painted a picture of absolute devastation in the historic town of Lahaina. They said that power, water, and internet continued to be down there. When asked for specific numbers on how many structures had been burned, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen said: “I’m telling you, none of it’s there.
