Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian media: Israeli occupation forces storm the Old City in the center of Nablus, occupied West Bank
Local sources to Al Mayadeen: Sudanese army forces drones strike town of Kabkabiya, North Darfur.
Syrian Observatory: The plane is loaded with air defense systems and heavy weapons as part of US troop reinforcements to its bases in northeastern Syria
Syrian Observatory: US cargo plane lands with two military helicopters at Kharab al-Jir base in the countryside of Rmeilan, north of Hasakah
Miguel Díaz-Canel to Gustavo Petro: US seeks to reimpose the Monroe Doctrine in its relations with sovereign states in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades, the military wing of the PFLP, says they handed over the body of an Israeli captive to the Israeli occupation forces in implementation of the clauses of the ceasefire agreement.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: Israeli drones are flying over the presidential palace in Baabda, Mount Lebanon, and over the skies of the capital, Beirut, and its suburbs.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli warplanes launch a series of raids on the al-Mahmoudiya and Jarmaq areas
Trump reiterates proposal for Russia and Ukraine to stop at current front line, negotiate later
Reuters: Trump says no discussion regarding Ukraine ceding Donbas to Russia

Hawaii wildfires: Maui death toll rises to 80

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News Websites
  • 12 Aug 2023 21:02
4 Min Read

Hawaiin authorities are investigating how and why the fire spread so quickly with little warning and no public warning sirens activated.

  • x
  • Maui death toll rises to 80
    Smoke from wildfires rises at Lahaina harbor in Hawaii on August 8, 2023. (AP)

The death toll from the Maui wildfires in Hawaii has increased to 80, as search and rescue crews scour through the smoldering wreckage of Lahaina, and a new fire forced the evacuation of another village on Friday night.

The latest fire was blazing in Kaanapali, West Maui, to the northeast of the region which burned earlier this week, according to the Maui police department.

According to flyovers by the US Civil Air Patrol and the Maui Fire Department, the wildfires spread swiftly on August 8, affecting more than 271 properties in the region. Strong winds from a distant hurricane, dry air underlying drought conditions, as well as deforestation, and the introduction of non-native, fire-prone grasses, were listed as reasons for the region's increased susceptibility to fire by a Weather Channel meteorologist and research.

Read more: 36 people killed so far as fire devastates Lahaina, Hawaii

The police statement on social media did not immediately disclose any specifics about the evacuation. According to local news station KHON, officials have subsequently said that the fire is completely controlled and that no more evacuations are required.

The fresh fire and mounting death toll occurred as Hawaiian authorities investigated how the original conflagration spread so quickly across Lahaina, a historic vacation town, with no warning.

Officials acknowledged that, despite having the world's biggest integrated outdoor all-hazard public safety warning system, no public warning sirens were activated, according to emergency management data.

Anne Lopez, Hawaii's attorney general, revealed her department was "committed to understanding the decisions that were made before and during the wildfires and to sharing with the public the results of this review,” adding that the process will be understood as the rescue efforts are ongoing.

The blaze is the deadliest natural disaster to befall the state since a tsunami killed 61 people in 1960.

Related News

Number of missing drops from hundreds to 66 in Hawaii

Maui residents slam government for not treating them as US citizens

A nightmare scenario

Hundreds of families have been relocated, and more than a thousand buildings in Lahaina had been damaged. Hawaii Governor Josh Green said Thursday.

The Lahaina Restoration Foundation, which is in charge of 14 key historic houses in the town, has lost numerous of its properties to fire.

The two-story Wo Hing Temple Museum, which was established in 1912 as a religious and social hall for the island's Chinese immigrants, and a 150-year-old banyan tree are among them. According to an AFP aerial shot obtained on August 10, just the outer envelope of the Old Lahaina Courthouse, which also housed the Lahaina Heritage Museum, remains. 

US senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii told CNN that the area looks like a war zone, and according to Maui County, the Laina fire was still blazing but was 85% controlled.

The island has emergency sirens that are supposed to sound in the event of a natural catastrophe or other threat, but they did not appear to sound during the fire, and Josh Green, Hawaii's governor told CNN that a "comprehensive review" has been authorized to investigate events that unfolded.

Green noted many, concurrent problems, including as telephone outages and firefighters focusing on other significant wildfires when the greatest threat to Lahaina emerged.

According to Bradford Ventura, the fire spread so quickly it was "nearly impossible" for responders to report to emergency officials. During a press conference Thursday he noted they were "basically self-evacuating with fairly little notice."

County mayor Richard Bissen called it an "impossible situation" on NBC’s Today show on Friday. Some describe having no warning and throwing themselves into the Pacific Ocean.

Andrew Rumbach, a climate and communities researcher at the Urban Institute in Washington details how the evacuation effort was hindered by the location's proximity to hills. 

Rumbach, a former urban planning professor at the University of Hawaii described it as a "nightmare scenario."

  • Maui
  • Lahaina
  • wildfires
  • Hawaii

Most Read

Iran strikes secret Israeli-US bunker under Tel Aviv high-rise

Tel Aviv high-rise struck by Iran hid Site 81, secret US-Israeli base

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Yemeni Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari , during a ceremony in an undisclosed locations in Yemen, undate (Yemeni Military Media)

Yemeni Armed Forces mourn martyred Chief of Staff al-Ghamari

  • Politics
  • 16 Oct 2025
Israeli occupation violates Gaza ceasefire, killing seven Palestinians.

Israeli occupation violates Gaza ceasefire, kills seven Palestinians

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Zionists Fundamentally Misread Iran Due To Their Own Echo Chambers

Zionists fundamentally misread Iran due to their own echo chambers

  • Analysis
  • 15 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
UK blocks release of documents on secretive Lammy-Sa’ar meeting.
Politics

UK blocks release of documents on secret Lammy-Sa’ar meeting

Colombia slams Trump’s drug accusation, defends sovereignty
Politics

Colombia slams Trump’s incendiary drug claims, defends sovereignty

The abuse was detailed in Giuffre's memoir "Nobody's Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice." (AP)
Politics

Epstein victim recounts choking, sexual assault by 'well-known PM'

The US Secret Service discovered a hunting stand near the airport President Donald Trump uses in Florida. (US Secret Service)
Politics

FBI probes hunting stand with sightline to Trump’s Air Force One exit

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS