Biden declares major disaster as wildfire rages in Maui, Hawaii
10.08.2023
Affected by Hurricane “Dora”, the wildfires in the Hawaiian resort of Maui continued to intensify, and the number of casualties continued to rise. US President Biden also declared the incident a “major disaster.” The authorities evacuated thousands of people in an emergency, while the fire fighting work was very difficult, and the power outage constituted a further obstacle to the fire fighting.
(Voice of Deutsche Welle Chinese Network) A press release from the local government of Maui stated that the violent wildfire that broke out on Wednesday (August 9) has destroyed most of the island’s historic city of Lahaina. The number has grown to at least 53. Dozens of others were injured as they tried to flee the blaze. More than 1,000 buildings were completely or partially destroyed.
The White House issued a statement on the 10th that US President Joe Biden declared the wildfire in Hawaii a “major disaster” and ordered federal assistance to assist in the reconstruction of the disaster area.
Local officials said many of the historic sites in the small west Maui town were destroyed, including historic buildings along Front Street and a large banyan tree brought to the island from India in 1873.
Aerial footage showed thick smoke billowing from the city of Lahaina, which has 12,000 permanent residents. This dealt a major blow to the local tourism industry, and many resort hotels were also severely damaged in the fire.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green told media that much of Lahaina had been destroyed and hundreds of families had been displaced.
Maui County Executive Richard Bissen said the search and rescue efforts are still ongoing and authorities have not yet completed an assessment of the damage, “so I don’t know how the damage and casualty numbers will change.”
The whole island is engulfed in flames and smoke
Evacuation and rescue efforts were also affected by power outages and communication disruptions. Hawaii Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke said communication with west Maui was only possible by satellite for now.
The Coast Guard has rescued 12 people from waters off Lahaina and is sending more ships to Maui. Many local people jumped into the sea to escape the flames and smoke.
U.S. President Joe Biden has expressed his condolences to the victims and directed “to use all available federal assets on the island” to assist in the relief effort.
wind fuels the fire
The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora likely contributed to the fire. Hawaii Lieutenant Governor Luke also said winds of up to 80 mph were fanning the flames.
Drought and high winds make it difficult to fight fires
(AFP, AP, Reuters)
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2023-08-11 03:24:59
