On August 8, 2023, shortly after midnight, one of the nation’s deadliest disasters struck parts of Maui, Hawaii, the 2023 Hawaii Wildfires, killing at least 97 people.
The wildfires burned over 2,500 acres of land across Lahaina, 0.5% of Hawaii’s total land area, demolishing hundreds of homes and businesses. The main cause of the wildfires is thought to be Hurricane Dora, a category 4 storm that moved across the coast of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The storm generated hurricane-like winds on the island which fueled the fires. Some officials say that the winds might’ve been as strong as 60-80 mph. The winds knocked down dozens of power lines, causing the initial fire, which then spread throughout the island because of the dry vegetation and low humidity. Because of the high wind speeds, the areas engulfed in flames were burning at a rate that was too difficult to escape from.
Maximus Yarawamai, a 63-year-old resident of Hawaii who traveled from his home to Lahaina to help the community in need, was interviewed by TIME. He told reporters, “I don’t think we were ready for it.” He compared the damage he’s seen to what he imagined Pearl Harbor or the Twin Towers to have looked like after those catastrophes. “I think we never thought that this would happen in Hawaii. We’ve had fires but not this magnitude.”
Due to the fact that they didn’t shut off the power amongst high wind warnings, Hawaiian Electric Co. has faced a huge amount of criticism. Even as dozens of poles began to collapse, they kept the power on. According to Euro News, a class-action lawsuit was filed seeking to hold the company responsible for the deaths of the Lahaina residents. The lawsuit claims that the power lines blown over by the high winds led to the spread of the Lahaina wildfire. According to Euro News, the President and CEO of Hawaiian Electric Co. spoke on the fires at a news conference, noting that many factors go into that decision, including the possible effect on people who rely on specialized medical equipment and firefighters who need power to pump water.
As fires began to swallow homes, Maui County Emergency Officials, according to AP News, “declined to use an extensive network of emergency sirens to alert Lahaina’s residents to flee.” Instead, officials “drove up and down streets of Lahaina, knocking on doors and using loudspeakers to notify people that they had to leave”.
After more than 30 power lines were down, the fire department closed the Lahaina Bypass road because of the danger of the downed power lines being live. This blocked the only way out of Lahaina to the south, causing major traffic jams and chaos, making it extremely difficult for people to leave.
When people couldn’t escape Lahaina by car, they resorted to escaping the flaming island by climbing Lahaina’s seawall and jumping into the ocean, securing safety from being burned. Survivors waited 9 hours in the ocean to be rescued. They suffered hypothermia and lack of oxygen from forcing themselves to gain the strength to stay awake in the ocean and avoid being taken away by the tides.
NBC reporters interviewed some of the survivors from the fires on August 8, one being Kekoa Lansford, “Can’t shake the images of glowing skeletons in burning homes and charred bodies in cars.” NBC’s report also stated, “Residents say they are haunted by a pervasive anguish. Many have trouble eating, sleeping, or getting out of bed, and experience nightmares or flashbacks triggered by noises like the sound of a fire engine or gust of strong wind. They describe a profound sadness or heaviness, what Native Hawaiians call “kaumaha”.
Hawaii Governor, Josh Green, estimated the damage of property caused by the fires at nearly $6 billion.
“The town of Lahaina, the formal royal capital of Hawaii and prominent tourist spot is gone,” said Mark Gudmunson, senior pastor of Pukalani Community Church of the Nazarene in Pukalain, Hawaii. The Lahaina Fire is the deadliest natural disaster in Hawaii’s history, even surpassing the deadly tsunami that struck Hilo, Hawaii in 1960. According to the National Fire Protection Association, The Lahaina fire ranks among the top 10 deadliest U.S. wildfires on record since 1871.
