Hawaii wildfires: At least 36 people dead after flames destroy large parts of town in Maui
At least 36 people have died after wildfires rampaged through parts of the Hawaiian island of Maui.
Maui County confirmed the deaths after fires, fuelled by the wind, swept across the historic town of Lahaina, West Maui – leading to mass evacuations.
“The gravity of losing any life is tragic. As we grieve with their families, we offer prayers for comfort in this inconsolable time,” Maui mayor Richard Bissen Jr said.
“Our main focus now is to save lives.”
Acting governor Sylvia Luke has declared a state of emergency and has urged people not to travel to the island, describing it as “not a safe place to be”.
The hall of historic Waiola Church in Lahaina and nearby Lahaina Hongwanji Mission are engulfed in flames. Pic: AP
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Hawaii wildfires are ‘like a warzone’
As winds eased slightly, some aircraft resumed flights, enabling pilots to view the full scope of the devastation.
Aerial video from coastal Lahaina showed dozens of homes and businesses flattened, including in Front Street, where tourists gathered to shop and dine.
Smoking heaps of rubble lay piled high next to the waterfront, boats in the harbour were scorched, and grey smoke hovered over the leafless skeletons of charred trees.
More than 270 structures have been damaged or destroyed so far, according to officials in Lahaina.
The town dates back to the 1700s, was once the capital of Hawaii and the seat of Kamehameha III during its period as a kingdom in the 1800s, and has long been a favourite destination for tourists.
An aerial view shows damage along the coast of Lahaina
A satellite image shows an infrared overview an area in Lahaina, Maui County
Pic:Maxar/Reuters
A satellite image shows an overview of wildfires in Lahaina, Maui County
Pic:Maxar /Reuters
A satellite image shows wildfires in Maui. Pic: European Union/Copernicus Sentinel
“It’s horrifying. I’ve flown here 52 years and I’ve never seen anything come close to this,” said Richard Olsten, a helicopter pilot for a tour company.
He said he went up in a helicopter to review the damage and see what help him and his team could provide to emergency crews.
“We were totally shocked at what we saw. We did not expect to see the extent of the destruction of Lahaina,” he told Sky News.
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“Basically, the whole Front Street of Lahaina, all the shops, the historical buildings, everything, has been burnt right to the ground.
“There are hundreds of people homeless, there’s still no power in the whole town, people can’t get access to food, so it was just an absolutely heart-wrenching site.
“And the really sad part about it too is the loss of the historical buildings on Front Street that can’t be rebuilt – so that whole area is levelled to the ground.”
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Hawaiians flee fire on boat
British rockstar Mick Fleetwood, who has lived in Hawaii for decades, revealed his restaurant had been lost due to the blaze in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Fleetwood Mac drummer wrote: “Fleetwood’s on Front Street has been lost and while we are heartbroken, our main priority is the safety of our dear staff and team members.
“On behalf of myself and my family, I share my heartfelt thoughts and prayers with the people of Maui.”
US President Joe Biden offered his “deepest condolences” to the people of Hawaii – the country’s 50th state.
“Our prayers are with those whose homes, businesses, and communities are destroyed,” he said in a post on X.
“I have ordered all available federal assets on the Islands to help with response.
“And I urge all residents to continue to follow evacuation orders, listen to the instructions of first responders and officials, and stay alert.”
It comes after three residents were left with critical burns after being forced to jump into the ocean, as wildfires affected the popular shopping and dining area known as Front Street.
Posting on X on Tuesday, the Coast Guard said 12 people had been rescued from the water off Lahaina.
The Coast Guard responded to areas where people had fled into the ocean to escape the fire and smoky conditions, the county said in a statement on Tuesday.
The governor of Hawaii, Josh Green, said on Wednesday that “loss of life is expected”.
“We have suffered a terrible disaster in the form of a wildfire that has spread widely as a result of hurricane-force winds in the region and underlying drought conditions,” he said.
“Maui and the Big Island both experienced significant fires. Much of Lahaina on Maui has been destroyed and hundreds of local families have been displaced.”
Pic: AP
Pic: Jeff Melichar/TMX
Intersection at Hokiokio Place and Lahaina Bypass in Maui. Pic: AP
At least 20 other patients were taken to Maui Memorial Medical Centre on Tuesday, Speedy Bailey, regional director for air-ambulance company Hawaii Life Flight, said.
Footage posted overnight showed flames affecting numerous buildings in the historic town centre, which dates back to the 1700s, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Some blocks of buildings were completely reduced to ash.
Kaniela Ing, who grew up in the area and co-founded the Native Hawaiian-focused organization Our Hawaii, described the destruction as “heartbreaking”.
“If you start from one end of Front Street and walk to the other end, it’s like a physical timeline of the history of the Hawaiian Kingdom,” Mr Ing he told NBC – the US partner of Sky News.
Smoke from wildfires at Lahaina harbour. Pic: AP
Pic: AP
Smoke billows near boats docked at Lahaina
“You can actually see the flow in the buildings stemming back 150 or more years. It’s remarkable, and just the thought that that history may have been lost in this fire or any bit of that history is heartbreaking.”
More than 2,100 people spent the night in four shelters on the island.
Kahului Airport, the main airport in Maui, was sheltering 2,000 passengers who had their flights cancelled or had only recently arrived at the island, the county said.
A charred boat lies in the scorched waterfront. Pic: Mason Jarvi
Smoke obscures the old Lahaina courthouse
The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora, which was passing to the south of the island chain, was partly to blame for gusts above 60mph (97kph).
The wind knocked out electricity, rattled homes and grounded firefighting helicopters. Flights resumed on Wednesday as the strong winds somewhat diminished.
The exact cause of the blaze has not yet been determined.
However, high winds, low humidity and dry vegetation, are likely to have contributed, according to Major General Kenneth Hara, adjutant general for Hawaii State Department of Defence.
Experts have also warned that climate change is increasing the likelihood of more extreme weather.
Smoke billows near Lahaina
“Climate change in many parts of the world is increasing vegetation dryness, in large part because temperatures are hotter,” said Erica Fleishman, director of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute at Oregon State University.
Hawaii’s Big Island have also been affected by fires, although no injuries or destroyed homes had been reported there.
Mayor Mitch Roth said one fire is “pretty much under control,” another is 60% contained, and a third, near the hotel Mauna Kea Resorts, continued to flare up.
However, authorities have insisted that while West Maui is closed to tourists due to the wildfires, the state of Hawaii itself remains “open” and that rooms are available on the Big Island for those still hoping to travel.
US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.
Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives resumed in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was “on the brink” on Monday.
A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.
Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their “closest point” yet to a ceasefire deal.
Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.
An Israeli official said a deal is close but “we are not there” yet.
More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
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Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on beachfront cafe in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Biden hails possibility of agreement
President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.
“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.
“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”
Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.
Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions
Pic: Reuters
Trump: ‘We’re very close’
President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.
“We’re very close to getting it done and they have to get it done,” he said.
“If they don’t get it done, there’s going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.
“And they will get it done. And I understand there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place.”
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Pic: AP
Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal
Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was “close, but we are not there”.
They accused Hamas of previously “dictating, not negotiating” but said this has changed in the last few weeks.
“Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal,” they added.
Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.
Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was “not in a rush” to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF “started to dismantle the Shia axis”.
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Biden: ‘Never, never, never, ever give up’
Iran ‘weaker than it’s been in decades’
Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.
“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” the president said.
Mr Biden claimed America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.
“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.
“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”
The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.
A draft ceasefire deal on the table between Israel and Hamas would see 33 hostages set free and a phased withdrawal of IDF forces from parts of Gaza.
President Joe Biden said an agreement to stop the fighting was “on the brink” and high level negotiations between the two sides resumed in Qatar on Tuesday.
The deal would see a number of things happen in a first stage, with negotiations for the second stage beginning in the third week of the ceasefire.
It would also allow a surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been devastated by more than a year of war.
Details of what the draft proposal entails have been emerging on Tuesday, reported by Israeli and Palestinian officials.
Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages hold photos of their loved ones during a protest on 8 January. Pic: AP
Hostages to be returned
In the first stage of the potential ceasefire, 33 hostages would be set free.
These include women (including female soldiers), children, men over the age of 50, wounded and sick.
Israel believes most of these hostages are alive but there has not been any official confirmation from Hamas.
In return for the release of the hostages, Israel would free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
People serving long sentences for deadly attacks would be included in this but Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October attack would not be released.
An arrangement to prevent Palestinian “terrorists” from going back to the West Bank would be included in the deal, an anonymous Israeli official said.
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The hostages who still haven’t returned home
Smoke billows as buildings lie in ruin in Beit Hanoun in Gaza. Pic: Reuters
Phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
The agreement also includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with IDF troops remaining in the border perimeter to defend Israeli border towns and villages.
Security arrangements would be implemented at the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land that runs along the border between Egypt and Gaza – with Israel withdrawing from parts of it after the first few days of the deal.
The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza would start to work gradually to allow the crossing of people who are sick and other humanitarian cases out of Gaza for treatment.
Unarmed North Gaza residents would be allowed to return to their homes, with a mechanism introduced to ensure no weapons are moved there.
“We will not leave the Gaza Strip until all our hostages are back home,” the Israeli official said.
What will happen to Gaza in the future?
There is less detail about the future of Gaza – from how it will be governed, to any guarantees that this agreement will bring a permanent end to the war.
“The only thing that can answer for now is that we are ready for a ceasefire,” the Israeli official said.
“This is a long ceasefire and the deal that is being discussed right now is for a long one. There is a big price for releasing the hostages and we are ready to pay this price.”
The international community has said Gaza must be run by Palestinians, but there has not been a consensus about how this should be done – and the draft ceasefire agreement does not seem to address this either.
In the past, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It also previously rejected the possibility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited governing powers in the West Bank, from taking over the administration of Gaza.
Since the beginning of its military campaign in Gaza, Israel has also said it would retain security control over the territory after the fighting ends.
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