Officials in Hawaii announced Thursday night that the death count from the Maui fires has reached 53 and could continue to increase in the coming days as search and rescue efforts continue on the island.
The fires, which continue to burn, have devastated the historic town of Lahaina and left more than 1,000 structures burned. Numerous people have lost their homes, while the town’s normally-bustling tourist district is believed to be destroyed.
Meanwhile, Maui County and state officials are continuing recuse efforts in the midst of what Gov Josh Green told the Associated Press that is expected to be the worst natural disaster since 61 people died in a tsunami that killed 61 people on the Big Island in 1961.
The fire began on Tuesday, fueled by strong winds and unusually dry summer conditions on Maui that left many residents and visitors in Lahaina with little time to take precautions to keep themselves and their loved ones and neighbours safe. Some people fled the town with few possessions, some others dove into water.
As of Thursday, Hawaiian Airlines was offering travel vouchers to people with tickets to fly to Maui between now and the end of the month. Sevearl airlines offering tickets as cheap as $19 to people fly off the island.
On the federal level, President Joe Biden has issued a major disaster declaration for the fires to unlock federal funding to be used in recovery efforts.