Be informed. Be challenged. Be inspired.

Hawaii releases detailed timeline of deadly wildfire that razed Lahaina

Reuters A fire engine arrived within five minutes of the first reports of a wildfire last August on the edge of Lahaina, the historic Hawaiian resort town, according to the most detailed timeline yet of the disaster, released on Wednesday by the Hawaii attorney general. The first emergency calls came in at 2:55pm on 8th […]

Death toll from Hawaii wildfires drops to 97 – Hawaii Governor

Combined Joint Task Force 50 search, rescue and recovery personnel conduct search operations of areas damaged by Maui wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii, US, on 15th August, 2023.

Washington DC, US Reuters The death toll from last month’s wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui has dropped to 97 and the number of people missing is now 31, Hawaii Governor Josh Green told CNN in an interview on Friday. Combined Joint Task Force 50 (CJTF-50) search, rescue and recovery personnel conduct search operations […]

Maui tourism, an economic mainstay, sparks anger amid fire ruin

Combined Joint Task Force 50 search, rescue and recovery personnel conduct search operations of areas damaged by Maui wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii, US on 15th August, 2023

Reuters The incongruous sight of tourists enjoying Maui’s tropical beaches while search-and-rescue teams trawl building ruins and waters for victims of the deadliest US wildfire in more than a century has outraged some residents. They have vented on social media, posting video of tourists enjoying holiday activities like snorkeling while the death toll in the […]

Updated: Maui officials defend decision not to sound sirens during wildfire

Vehicles are seen in traffic on Honoapiilani Hwy after officials allowed residents and tourists back into West Maui after a wildfire destroyed the historic town of Lahaina, in Maui, Hawaii, US, on 11th August, 2023

Updated: 12:30pm Lahaina, Hawaii, US Reuters Maui’s emergency management chief on Wednesday defended his agency’s decision against sounding sirens during last week’s deadly wildfire amid questions about whether doing so might have saved lives. Herman Andaya, administrator of the Maui County Emergency Management Agency, said sirens in Hawaii are used to alert people to tsunamis. […]

Maui’s displaced grow restless as search for fire victims drags on

Local survivors of the Lahaina wildfire gather for a community dinner as they take care of each other after much of their town was ravaged in Lahaina on the island of Maui in Hawaii, US, on 14th August, 2023.

Kahului, Hawaii, US Reuters A week after a ferocious wildfire ravaged the Maui resort town of Lahaina, anxious residents were still awaiting news of hundreds of missing loved ones on Tuesday, as teams with cadaver dogs conducted a painstaking block-by-block search of the ashes. Local, state and federal rescue workers have urged patience. The teams […]

Maui search is 25 per cent complete as death toll from wildfires grows to 99

A Maui County firefighter fights flare-up fires in a canyon in Kula on Maui island, Hawaii, US, on 13th August, 2023

Kahului, Hawaii Reuters Search teams with cadaver dogs have combed through 25 per cent of the Lahaina disaster zone from the Maui wildfires, discovering the remains of a 99th victim on Monday, but perhaps hundreds more people were unaccounted for nearly a week after the disaster. Fueled by winds gusting up to 128 kph, an […]

Hawaii churches offer prayers for the dead and the missing after devastating Maui wildfires

Parishioners attend Mass at Sacred Hearts Mission Church in Kapalua, Hawaii, on Sunday, 13th August, 2023.

Lahaina, Hawaii AP Parishioners mourned the dead and prayed for the missing Sunday in Hawaii churches as communities began looking ahead to a long recovery from last week’s wildfire that demolished a historic Maui town and killed more than 90 people. Maria Lanakila Church in Lahaina was spared from the flames that wiped out most of the surrounding community, […]