The hell on one of the most iconic islands in the world now leaves room for disputes and the counting of victims and damages. The number of deaths from the fires in Hawaii is increasing, but the controversy over the failure to prevent and mismanage the emergency is also growing, which has led to the opening of an official investigation. The latest toll speaks of at least 80 dead, a number that makes the Lahaina fire, the blaze of Lahaina on the island of Maui, the worst natural disaster ever in the history of Hawaii, surpassing the 61 victims of the 1960 tsunami in Hilo, on the largest island of the tropical archipelago. A budget that is still provisional and destined to grow, as local governor Josh Green predicts “without any doubt”. In fact, there are a thousand missing and the rescuers have not yet checked inside the houses, where many may have been trapped, nor finished their searches at sea, where several inhabitants jumped to escape the flames. Special dogs are also employed to find the corpses. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani updates on the situation of our compatriots via X (ex Twitter): «There are about 60 Italians on the archipelago and we are tracing them. The US authorities have confirmed to us that there are no compatriots among the victims”.
The apocalypse in Hawaii, they jump into the sea to save themselves from the burning island
Climate change under attack
Nearly 1,500 people are instead housed in emergency shelters. Meanwhile, Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez has announced the opening of an investigation into the decisions and measures taken by the authorities before, during and after the fires, and has promised to make the findings public. Of course, climate change is the main cause of the disaster, but from the first investigations it seems that many things have not worked well to prevent and mitigate its lethal effects. The Hawaiian Electric company, for example, despite being aware of forecasts of powerful gusts of wind and the danger of fires, has not adopted what is now considered the most effective measure: disconnecting the electricity in areas at risk, as many states do Usa, starting from California, after the devastating fires of 2017-2018. Furthermore, the sirens of the alarm system were not activated, while the alert messages on mobile phones did not arrive due to lack of coverage. “The lethality and speed of the fire was underestimated,” accused Hawaii dem MP Jill Tokuda. “We didn’t learn the lesson from Hurricane Lane in 2018 that wildfires can start with strong southerly winds,” she added.
Hawaii, in the streets of the destroyed city of Lahaina: rubble, smoke and the desperation of the survivors
Five years ago Hurricane Lane and the fires
Five years ago Hurricane Lane fueled wildfires that destroyed 2,330 acres on Maui. The following year, flames burned another 25,000 acres. Yet in a report last year, the civil protection classified the risk of fires as “low”. Now, however, the Lahaina fire has burned another 2,170 acres of land, and damaged or destroyed 2,719 buildings, 86% of which are residential. There are still some outbreaks, which during the night forced yet another evacuation in the western area of the island, but the situation appears to be under control. FEMA, the US federal agency for civil protection, is starting to calculate the damage and estimates that at least 5.5 billion dollars will be needed for reconstruction in Maui. But now we urgently need food, water, medicines, cleaning and hygiene products.
Aid and solidarity
And as solidarity initiatives multiply, including the $ 100 million donated by Jeff Bezos and his girlfriend Lauren Sánchez, Lahaina residents have been allowed to return to their town for the first time. Most have found their homes in ashes, pining for having lost everything but often comforting themselves with seeing friends and neighbors safely again. The few who have cried a miracle for the house intact do not want to leave fearing the looters, despite the risk that it is unsafe and with contaminated water. The authorities have imposed a night curfew to protect the buildings.