Tag: Maui

Maui County sued Hawaiian Electric Company on Thursday over the fires that devastated Lahaina, saying the utility negligently failed to shut off power despite exceptionally high winds and dry conditions.

Witness accounts and video indicated that sparks from power lines ignited fires as utility poles snapped in the winds, which were driven by a passing hurricane. The Aug. 8 fires have killed at least 115 people, making them the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a century. Hundreds more remain missing.

Hawaii Electric said in a statement it is “very disappointed that Maui County chose this litigious path while the investigation is still unfolding.”

The FBI and Maui County police are still trying to determine how many people remain unaccounted for in the fires. The FBI said Tuesday there were 1,000 to 1,100 names on a tentative, unconfirmed list.

Maui County officials said Thursday that 46 of the victims have so far been identified. They include 7-year-old Tony Takafua, the first confirmed child victim of the fires.

In a news release announcing the lawsuit, Maui County officials said the wildfires destroyed more than 2,200 structures and caused at least $5.5 billion in damage.

The lawsuit said the destruction could have been avoided and that the utility had a duty “to properly maintain and repair the electric transmission lines, and other equipment including utility poles associated with their transmission of electricity, and to keep vegetation properly trimmed and maintained so as to prevent contact with overhead power lines and other electric equipment.”

The utility knew that high winds “would topple power poles, knock down power lines, and ignite vegetation,” the lawsuit said. “Defendants also knew that if their overhead electrical equipment ignited a fire, it would spread at a critically rapid rate.”

A drought in the region had left plants, including invasive grasses, dangerously dry. As Hurricane Dora passed roughly 500 miles south of Hawaii, strong winds toppled at least 30 power poles in West Maui. Video shot by a Lahaina resident shows a downed power line setting dry grasses alight. Firefighters initially contained that fire, but then left to attend to other calls, and residents said the fire later reignited and raced toward downtown Lahaina.

With downed power lines, police or utility crews blocking some roads, traffic ground to a standstill along Lahaina’s Front Street. A number of residents jumped into the water off Maui as they tried to escape the flaming debris and overheated black smoke enveloping downtown.

Dozens of searchers in snorkel gear this week have been combing a 4-mile stretch of water for signs of anyone who might have perished. Crews are also painstakingly searching for remains among the ashes of destroyed businesses and multistory residential buildings.

“Our primary focus in the wake of this unimaginable tragedy has been to do everything we can to support not just the people of Maui, but also Maui County,” Hawaiian Electric’s statement said.

Hawaiian Electric is a for-profit, investor-owned, publicly traded utility that serves 95% of Hawaii’s electric customers. It is also facing several lawsuits from Lahaina residents as well as one from some of its own investors, who accused it of fraud in a federal lawsuit Thursday, saying it failed to disclose that its wildfire prevention and safety measures were inadequate.

Maui County’s lawsuit notes other utilities, such as Southern California Edison Company, Pacific Gas & Electric, and San Diego Gas & Electric, have procedures for shutting off power during bad windstorms and said the “severe and catastrophic losses … could have easily been prevented” if Hawaiian Electric had a similar shutoff plan.

The county said it is seeking compensation for damage to public property and resources in Lahaina as well as nearby Kula.

Other utilities have been found liable for devastating fires recently.

In June, a jury in Oregon found the electric utility PacifiCorp responsible for causing devastating fires during Labor Day weekend in 2020, ordering the company to pay tens of millions of dollars to 17 homeowners who sued and finding it liable for broader damages that could push the total award into the billions.

Pacific Gas & Electric declared bankruptcy and pleaded guilty to 84 counts of manslaughter after its neglected equipment caused a fire in the Sierra Nevada foothills in 2018 that killed 85 people, destroyed nearly 19,000 homes, businesses and other buildings, and virtually razed the town of Paradise, California.

Exactly two weeks after a wildfire ripped through the historic Maui city of Lahaina, officials on Tuesday said that the number of people unaccounted for in the blaze continues to fluctuate due to uncertain and incomplete data. At least 115 people have been killed in the fire, the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century.

In a news briefing Tuesday afternoon, Steven Merrill, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Honolulu division, said that the number of people “reported unaccounted for” is between 1,000 and 1,100.

“Whether it be someone who just gave a first name, ‘Chris is missing,’ or someone that gave very extensive and specific information,” Merrill clarified.

This latest estimate comes one day after Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen said that the number of missing was believed to be at around 850.

“We don’t want to leave any stone unturned, so we’re considering everybody on that list until we can prove that they’re not on that list,” Merrill said, emphasizing the number will change as new information continues to come in.

“There may be a shelter out there, for example, a hotel out there, that hasn’t reported people,” he said.

Officials were unable to confirm how many of the missing are children. Merrill disclosed that no one on their missing persons lists has a child’s birthdate. 

“That doesn’t mean…there are not minor victims,” Merrill said. “…On all of our lists, we don’t have any names, currently, that show a date of birth of someone who is a child,” Merrill said. 

He also noted that about 1,400 of the 2,500 people who were initially reported missing have been so far found safe. 

For days, hundreds of search and rescue crews and dozens of cadaver dogs have been canvassing the burn area for human remains. The FBI has evidence collection personnel, forensic science experts and cell phone analysts on the ground in Maui assisting in the identification process, Merrill said. 

Familial DNA is being used to help identify victims. At least 104 DNA reference samples have been collected so far from people on the island in an effort to “construct family trees, or pedigrees,” Julie French, senior vice president for the DNA analysis company ANDE, told reporters.

“Nearly three-quarters of the remains that have been tested thus far have generated searchable DNA results,” French said.

Maui Prosecuting Attorney Andy Martin said DNA analysis was being solely conducted by ANDE, not the FBI or any other local government agencies, and that the samples collected were only being used for the purpose of identifying victims.

As of Tuesday evening, 43 people have been identified, county officials said. Of those, eight names have been publicly released, ranging in age from 59 to 74. 

Meanwhile, there were fresh questions over how aware Maui County officials were of the conditions on the ground Aug. 8 as the Lahaina fire was breaking out. This because of an interview Mayor Richard Bissen gave to local station KITV-TV, just after 6 p.m. on Aug. 8.

“I’m happy to report the road is open to and from Lahaina,” Bissen told KITV at the time.

However, Bissen was seemingly unaware that, at that point, much of downtown Lahaina was already ablaze, with thousands of people trying to flee the flames which destroyed about 80% of the city.  

When asked about the timeframe of that specific interview Tuesday, Bissen responded that “we had lots of information coming in, we had lots of communication that was broken down.”

As the fire situation was unfolding, Bissen said, he was being briefed through the emergency operations center, with most of that information coming from the fire department.

The mayor disclosed that he “wasn’t aware…until later” that Maui County police officers had allegedly gone door-to-door in Lahaina at the time of the fire “making personal pleas…knocking on doors” and using speakers to ask people to evacuate.

“I can’t tell you what contributed to what,” Bissen said.

Last week, the chief of the Maui Emergency Management Agency resigned after being roundly criticized for not activating the island’s warning sirens as the Lahaina fire was spreading.

One day before quitting, when asked by reporters if he regretted not activating the sirens, Herman Andaya responded, “I do not.”

The cause of the wildfires remains under investigation. Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez also announced last week that she will bring in a “third-party private organization” to assess the response of local government agencies to the fires. 

The Lahaina fire, one of four wildfires which broke out Aug. 8 on the island, burned about 3.39 square miles. It destroyed at least 2,200 structures, according to estimates, about 86% of which were residential. It was 90% contained as of Monday. 

The four fires have burned a combined estimate of 10 square miles. On Monday, President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden traveled to Maui to tour the disaster zone. 

— Jonathan Vigliotti and Caitlin O’Kane contributed to this report. 

Maui officials confirmed Friday that the wildfire death toll has risen to at least 114, while the search for hundreds of missing people continued in the historic coastal port city of Lahaina, which was almost completely destroyed by the blaze.  

Only six of the victims have so far been publicly identified.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green and his wife, Jaime Green, held an emotional livestream address Friday night from Honolulu.

“For generations Lahaina’s beauty culture and rich history drew artists, musicians and visitors from around the world,” Jaime Green said. “Tragically, it took less than a single day for us to lose Lahaina in the deadliest fire our country has seen in more than a century.”

The Lahaina fire was one of four which broke out on the island on Aug. 8. Green said Friday that at least 2,200 structures have been destroyed and another 500 damaged in the blaze.

“Far more devastating than any material loss, is the loss of precious lives,” the governor said. “Of mothers, fathers, grandparents, sons and daughters.”

Earlier in the day, Maui Mayor Richard Bissen told reporters that about 60% of the Lahaina burn area had been canvassed for human remains by several hundred federal search and rescue personnel using dozens of cadaver dogs.  

A FEMA spokesperson Wednesday estimated that the number of people unaccounted for was between 1,100 and 1,300.

Six forensic anthropologists with the Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency are assisting in gathering and identifying human remains, the Pentagon said in a statement Friday. The group is experienced in verifying DNA from long-lost service members, many of whom died as long ago as World War II.

Marcus Coleman, a senior official from FEMA, said Friday that about 1,000 federal responders are now on the ground in Maui.

About 6,000 residents have registered for federal assistance, Coleman said, adding that FEMA has paid out about $5.6 million so far to 2,000 households.

Authorities hope to empty crowded, uncomfortable group shelters by early next week, said Brad Kieserman, vice president for disaster operations with the American Red Cross. Hotels also are available for eligible evacuees who have spent the last eight days sleeping in cars or camping in parking lots, he said.

Contracts with the hotels will last for at least seven months but could easily be extended, he said. Service providers at the properties will offer meals, counseling, financial assistance and other disaster aid.

The governor has said at least 1,000 hotel rooms have been set aside for displaced residents and first responders. In addition, Airbnb said its nonprofit wing will provide properties for 1,000 people.

Bissen said he will name a temporary replacement on Monday for Herman Andaya, the Maui Emergency Management Agency administrator who abruptly resigned Thursday after defending a decision not to sound outdoor warning sirens during the Lahaina fire.

Andaya had said this week that he had no regrets about not deploying the system because he feared it could have caused people to go “mauka,” a Hawaiian term that can mean toward the mountains or inland.

“If that was the case, then they would have gone into the fire,” Andaya explained. He stepped down Thursday, a day later.

Andaya’s resignation letter was brief and had no mention of the health reasons that county officials cited for his resignation.

The decision to not use the sirens, coupled with water shortages that hampered firefighters and an escape route clogged with vehicles that were overrun by flames, has brought intense criticism from many residents following the deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in more than a century.

Hawaii has what it touts as the largest system of outdoor alert sirens in the world, created after a 1946 tsunami that killed more than 150 on the Big Island. Its website says they may be used to alert for fires.

On Wednesday, Andaya vigorously defended his qualifications for the job, which he had held since 2017. He said he was not appointed but had been vetted, took a civil service exam and was interviewed by seasoned emergency managers.

Andaya said he had previously been deputy director of the Maui County Department of Housing and Human Concerns and chief of staff for former Maui County Mayor Alan Arakawa for 11 years. During that time, he said, he often reported to “emergency operations centers” and participated in numerous trainings.

“So to say that I’m not qualified I think is incorrect,” he said.

Corrine Hussey Nobriga said it was hard to lay blame for a tragedy that took everyone by surprise, even if some of her neighbors raised questions about the absence of sirens and inadequate evacuation routes.

The fire moved quickly through her neighborhood, though her home was spared.

“One minute we saw the fire over there,” she said, pointing toward faraway hills, “and the next minute it’s consuming all these houses.”

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The Justice Department confirmed Friday it has deployed federal emergency response teams to assist in that investigation. They include investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez said Thursday that an outside organization will conduct “an impartial, independent” review of the government’s response.

Native Hawaiians and others from Lahaina said earlier Friday they worry Green is moving too quickly to rebuild what was lost while the grief is still raw.

“The fire occurred only 10 days ago, and many people are still in shock and mourning,” Tiare Lawrence, who grew up in Lahaina, said at an emotional news conference organized by community activists. They called Green to give residents time to grieve, provide community leaders with recovery decision-making roles and comply with open-records laws amid distrust in the government response to the disaster.

Since the flames consumed much of Lahaina, locals have feared a rebuilt town could become even more oriented toward wealthy visitors.

Earlier this week, he said he would announce details of a moratorium on land transactions in Lahaina to prevent people from falling victim to land grabs. Green has said Lahaina’s future will be determined by its people, but didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the group’s concerns.

“The governor should not rush to rebuild the community without first giving people time to heal, especially without including the community itself in the planning,” Lawrence said. “Fast-track development cannot come at the cost of community control.”

More than a dozen of Lawrence’s uncles and cousins fled the fast-moving fire last week and went east to her Pukalani home.

The coalition of activists, under the umbrella of a group calling itself “Na Ohana o Lele: Lahaina,” were especially concerned about the impact of development on the environment and noted how mismanagement of resources — particularly land and water — contributed to the quick spread of the fire.

President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden are scheduled to visit the island Monday.