'We still have dead bodies', Maui wildfire survivors narrate harrowing tales as toll rises to 53 & 1000 still missin

Maui, the Hawaiian island, was hit by a wildfire catastrophe that left behind a scene of destruction and death, as the flames consumed many homes and historic sites, and claimed the lives of at least 53 people. More than 1000 went missing.

Survivors shared their harrowing stories of escaping with nothing but their lives, as the fire caught them off guard and gave them little time to react.

Aerial footage of Lahaina, the largest town on the west side of the island, showed a landscape of ashes and ruins, where colorful and lively streets used to be.

Many historic buildings along the famous Front Street, where tourists enjoyed shopping and dining, were burned to the ground.

Boats in the harbor were also damaged by the fire, and smoke lingered over the town, which has a history dating back to the 1700s.

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More than 1,000 structures were destroyed by fires that were still burning, he said. This is the state’s deadliest natural disaster since a 1960 tsunami that took 61 people on the Big Island, and the death toll could rise further as search and rescue operations continue, Green added.

Tiffany Kidder Winn’s gift store Whaler’s Locker, which is one of the town’s oldest shops, was among the many businesses destroyed. As she surveyed the damage Thursday, she saw a row of cars that were torched, some with charred bodies inside.

“It looked like they were trying to get out, but were stuck in traffic and couldn’t get off Front Street,” she said. She later noticed a body leaning against a seawall.

Winn said the destruction was so extensive, “I couldn’t even tell where I was because all the landmarks were gone.”

“We still have dead bodies floating in the water,” an eyewitness shared his harrowing experience.

The fire started Tuesday and took Maui by surprise, spreading quickly through dry vegetation covering the island and then devouring homes and anything else in its way.

With a confirmed death toll of 53 as of Thursday, this wildfire stands as the most lethal in the United States since the 2018 Camp Fire in California. The Fire claimed the lives of a minimum of 85 individuals and obliterated the town of Paradise.

The potential for an increase in the Hawaii casualty count remains, as rescue teams gain access to previously unreachable areas of the island, hindered by the trio of ongoing fires. Notably, the Lahaina fire, which was reported to be 80% contained on Thursday as stated in a press release by Maui County, adds to this concern. Numerous individuals have sustained injuries, with some in critical condition.

“We are still in life preservation mode. Search and rescue is still a primary concern,” said Adam Weintraub, a spokesperson for Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

Search and rescue teams still won’t be able to access certain areas until the fire lines are secure and safe, Weintraub added.

The fire forced some people to act in minutes and led some to flee into the ocean.

A Lahaina man, Bosco Bae, posted a video on Facebook from Tuesday night that showed fire engulfing almost every building on a street as sirens wailed and sparks flew by. Bae, who said he was one of the last people to leave the town, was evacuated to the island’s main airport and was waiting to be allowed to return home.

Marlon Vasquez, a 31-year-old cook from Guatemala who came to the U.S. in January 2022, said that when he heard the fire alarms, it was already too late to escape in his car.

“I opened the door, and the fire was almost on top of us," he said from an evacuation center at a gymnasium.

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“We ran and ran. We ran almost the whole night and into the next day because the fire didn’t stop."

Vasquez and his brother Eduardo escaped via roads that were clogged with vehicles full of people. The smoke was so toxic that he vomited. He said he’s not sure his roommates and neighbors made it to safety.

“Lahaina, with a few rare exceptions, has been burned down,” Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press.

“We are heartsick.”

Source: BBC

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