2023-08-10 12:39:43
The town of Lahaina, on the island of Maui, was almost completely destroyed by the flames.
It is “a deeply dark day” for the island of Maui, according to the mayor of this island of the archipelago of Hawaii (United States), Richard Bissen. Serious fires killed at least 36 people there, according to a new report from the authorities communicated on Wednesday, August 9 in the evening. Franceinfo summarizes what we know about these devastating fires.
Fires favored by drought and wind
According to Hawaii News Nowat least three fires were still active and uncontrolled on Wednesday in Maui, the main island affected with that of Hawaii, in the south of the archipelago. “We don’t know what started the fires, but we were notified in advance by the National Weather Service that we were on a red alert situation, [en raison] drought conditions”said during a point on Wednesday Kenneth Hara, commanding general of the Hawaii National Guard, quoted by CBS News. This context, along with low humidity and strong winds, “created the conditions for the fires”.
Fires in Lahaina, on the island of Maui (Hawaii, United States), August 9, 2023. (ZEKE KALUA / COUNTY OF MAUI / AFP)
As explained the US National Weather Service, “a Fort high pressure system upstate [d’Hawaï] continues to produce a very dry and stable climate on the islands.” “The combination of the strong high pressure to the north and Hurricane Dora passing well to the south continues to produce strong, gusty region”, he adds. Which, as a result, has caused “critical fire weather conditions” until late Wednesday evening. The winds sometimes reached up to 100 km / h on the archipelago.
The town of Lahaina “almost completely burnt down”
On Maui’s west coast, the town of Lahaina, with a population of just over 12,000, has been hit hard by the fires. According to state senator Brian Schatz, the municipality is “almost completely burnt down”. “Much of Lahaina…has been destroyed and hundreds of local families have been displaced”Hawaii Governor Josh Green confirmed in a statement.
According to the county of Maui, no less than 271 structures damaged or ravaged by flames were recorded during overflights of the city. CNN collected the testimony of Dustin Kaleiopu, one of the inhabitants whose house was devastated. The American saw the fire approach his home amid high winds early Wednesday morning. He left the scene with his grandfather shortly after 4 a.m. “Our whole street was burned down”, he tells the American channel.
In downtown Lahaina, “apart from a few buildings here and there, everything is rubble”, a law enforcement officer told AFP. The city “hasn’t been excavated or cleared at all. (…) Considering the amount of charred material, (…) I don’t think there is much alive in there”, he lamented.
At least 36 people killed in these fires
The latest report from Maui County, released Wednesday evening and quoted by CNN, reports at least 36 people killed in the fires. According to local authorities quoted by Hawaii News Nowat least twenty other people suffer from severe burns related to these fires.
On Wednesday, three injured people were in critical condition and were being treated in Honolulu, on the island of O’ahu. Maui’s hospital network is “exceeds” by the number of patients who were injured or who inhaled smoke, said Hawaii Vice Governor Sylvia Luke.
Some residents also had to jump into the water to escape the flames. According to the US Coast Guard quoted by CNN14 people were rescued from the waters near Lahaina.
Thousands of residents evacuated
More than 11,000 people were evacuated from Maui on Wednesday, the Hawaii Department of Transportation director was quoted by CNN as saying. More than 2,100 were in emergency evacuation centers, the Maui mayor added. Authorities quoted by Hawaii News Now said at least 2,000 more were waiting to leave the island at Kahului airport on the west coast.
Some 4,000 people are also being urgently accommodated at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu, reports Hawaii News Now. Further evacuations are scheduled for Thursday.
Rescue operations complicated by power cuts
Faced with the fires, the National Guard was activated. US President Joe Biden assured of the mobilization of “all available federal means” to fight the flames.
Military helicopters have notably been deployed in support of rescue and firefighting operations. They have already dropped more than 500,000 liters of water to put out the flames, CNN reports.
The strong gusts of wind knocked down utility poles and shut down some communication networks in Maui. In parts of the island, “[le service d’appel d’urgence] 911, the mobile phone network and the fixed network are down”, the vice-governor of the archipelago told CNN. According to Power Outage websitewhich lists homes without electricity in the United States, just over 11,000 customers remained without power in Maui on Wednesday evening.
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