The out-of-control wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui have killed at least six people and injured dozens more, while others were forced to jump into the ocean to escape.
Flames have ripped through historic Lahaina town, an area popular with tourists, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses, but there is little the overwhelmed island can do to fight back the fires.
“911 is down. Cell service is down. Phone service is down,” Hawaii Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke told CNN on Wednesday morning, adding that the island’s hospital system is “overburdened with burn patients, people suffering from (smoke) inhalation.”
Official details on the extent of casualties and building damages were scant early on Wednesday morning, but panicked residents fleeing the flames posted videos and photos on social media showing apocalyptic clouds of smoke billowing up over formerly once-idyllic beaches and palm trees.
The situation in Hawaii mirrored scenes of devastation elsewhere in the world this summer, as wildfires caused by record-setting heat forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people in Greece, Spain, Portugal, and other parts of Europe.
Is it unknown at this point how much of Lahaina has been decimated, but Hawaii News Now reports that the damage is extensive and residents describe the scene as “apocalyptic.”
Aerial video taken of the seaside town on Wednesday morning showed large parts of the town burned to the ground.
Strong winds from Hurricane Dora, passing by the island approximately 800 kilometres away, are fanning the fire’s flames, causing the inferno to quickly rip through buildings and dry brush.
Videos shared on social media Tuesday night painted a terrifying scene, as walls of flames moved in on Front Street in Lahaina.
A dozen people were rescued near Lahaina after “entering the ocean due to smoke and fire conditions,” the Coast Guard and county officials said. “Individuals were transported by the Coast Guard to safe areas,” Maui County officials said in a news release.
Six patients were flown from Maui to the island of Oahu on Tuesday night, said Speedy Bailey, regional director for Hawaii Life Flight, an air-ambulance company. Three of them had critical burns and were taken to Straub Medical Center’s burn unit, he said. The others were taken to other Honolulu hospitals. At least 20 patients were taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center, he said.
Maui Fire officials warned that erratic wind, challenging terrain, steep slopes and dropping humidity all combine to make it difficult to predict the path and speed of the fires.
“The fire can be a mile or more from your house, but in a minute or two, it can be at your house,” said Fire Assistant Chief Jeff Giesea in a statement to Facebook. “Burning airborne materials can light fires a great distance away from the main body of fire.”
Lt. Gov. Luke told CNN that officials are working to evacuate tourists to another island, but severed communications are making the task much more difficult.
“What we are trying to do is deploy individuals to go into areas with satellite phone service. We have only been in contact with perhaps one hotel because the one hotel, the people in charge of that hotel, have satellite phones,” Luke said Wednesday morning.
“That’s the only way you can make a connection. It’s impeding communication … and we are very concerned about that.”
By early Wednesday, Maui County had closed all roads into Lahaina. West Maui was closed to everyone except emergency workers and those evacuating the area, according to its social media postings.
Maui County officials moved several evacuation sites at local civic centers farther away from Lahaina and other areas affected by the fires to new sites as precautionary measures.
Kahului Airport, the main airport in Maui, was sheltering 2,000 travelers whose flights were canceled or who recently arrived on the island, the county said.
Officials are preparing the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu to take in thousands of displaced tourists and locals.
Jérémie Bérubé,a spokesperson with Global Affairs Canada, told Global News that the agency is “closely monitoring” the situation, but “has not received any request for consular assistance related to this event.”
Any Canadians who need emergency assistance can contact Global Affairs Canada’s Emergency Watch and Response Centre.
Members of the Hawaii National Guard have been deployed to help, and are currently stationed on the island — with more on the way.
“Hawaii National Guardsmen have been activated and are currently on Maui assisting Maui Police Department at traffic control points,” Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, Hawaii’s adjutant general, posted on Facebook.
The fires weren’t only burning on Maui.
There have been no reports of injuries or homes lost to three wildfires burning on Hawaii’s Big Island, Mayor Mitch Roth said Wednesday. Firefighters did extinguish a few roof fires. One fire is “pretty much under control,” he said. Another is 60 per cent contained, and the other near Mauna Kea Resorts continues to have flareups.
Because of the wind gusts on Maui, helicopters weren’t able to dump water on the fires or get aerial estimates of the fire sizes, and firefighters were encountering roads blocked by downed trees and power lines as they worked the inland fires, Martin said.
— with files from Reuters and The Associated Press
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