Lahaina: As crews sorted through the destruction and marked homes with a bright orange X to indicate they had searched for bodies and HR when they found human remains, the grim task of tallying the dead following a fierce wildfire on the Hawaiian island of Maui came into sharp focus.
The fire that engulfed the historic town of Lahaina on the west coast of Maui claimed at least 80 lives. Residents who barely made it out alive returned to assess their losses as the homes that were still standing received their marks.
Gov. Josh Green said, "Most of our focus will be on humans today," as he and FEMA officials stood beneath the scorched branches of a beloved old banyan tree on historic Front Street on Saturday. Operations, according to Green, are now focused on "the loss of life."
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Emergency personnel had to scramble on Saturday to find temporary housing for those who were fortunate enough to survive after the fire reduced hundreds of homes to ash. With 30 cell towers still down, communication was still challenging. On the western side of the island, power outages were predicted to last for a number of weeks. While search efforts are ongoing, authorities have issued a warning that the death toll could increase.
Those who made it out were counting their blessings and grateful to be alive while grieving for those who did not.
Geoff Bogar, a retired fire captain, and Franklin Trejos, a 35-year friend, initially stayed behind to aid locals in Lahaina and save Bogar's home. Tuesday afternoon, however, as the flames grew closer, they realised they had to leave. To his own car, each fled. Bogar's wouldn't start, so he smashed a window to escape and crouched down until a police patrol discovered him and took him to the hospital.
Trejos was less fortunate. The following day, when Bogar came back, he discovered the remains of his 68-year-old friend's friend Sam, the family's cherished 3-year-old golden retriever, on top of his bones in the back seat of his car.
Trejos, a Costa Rican, had lived with Bogar and his wife, Shannon Weber-Bogar, for years, helping her when her husband couldn't by managing her seizures. He brought joy and love into their lives.
"God took a really good man," said Weber-Bogar.
Bill Wyland, who resides on the island of Oahu but owns an art gallery on Lahaina's famed Front Street, sped away on his Harley Davidson on Tuesday as embers burned the hair from the back of his neck. He swerved the motorcycle onto empty sidewalks to avoid congested roads.
He estimated the wind speed to be at least 70 mph (112 kph), and as he rode, he passed a cyclist who was desperately pedalling for his life.
It's like something out of the Twilight Zone or a horror film, Wyland remarked.
When Wyland arrived back in the heart of Lahaina on Thursday, he immediately recognised how fortunate he had been.
"Seeing all the burned-out cars was heartbreaking. Nothing was still standing, he declared. Along with the destruction of his gallery, 30 artists' works were also lost.
Emergency management officials in Maui were looking for locations to house those who had been evicted from their homes. County officials stated on Facebook early on Saturday that as many as 4,500 people require shelter, citing data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Pacific Disaster Centre.
1,692 destroyed structures were discovered during flyovers by the Civil Air Patrol, almost all of which were houses. Officials used sonar to determine that nine boats had sunk in Lahaina Harbour.
The wildfires have surpassed a tsunami that killed 61 people in 1960 as the state's deadliest natural disaster in decades. A more deadly tsunami in 1946 that killed over 150 people on the Big Island led to the creation of a territory-wide emergency system with monthly siren tests.
According to Hawaii emergency management records, no warning sirens were heard prior to people being forced to flee for their lives. Authorities issued alerts to mobile phones, televisions, and radio stations, but their reach may have been constrained by widespread power and cellular outages.
The Maui wildfires roared through the island's parched vegetation due to a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane.
Lahaina, a town of 13,000 people, was nearly completely destroyed by the most severe fire on Tuesday, leaving a grid of grey rubble wedged between the blue ocean and lush green slopes.
On a Saturday morning, Front Street, the centre of Maui's historic downtown and its commercial district, was largely deserted. One resident who was barefoot and carrying a laptop and passport approached an Associated Press reporter and inquired about the location of the closest shelter. Another person assessed the damage while pedalling his bicycle through the harbour, where he claimed his boat had sunk after catching fire.
The neighbourhood was strangely empty of people and official government activity, with the exception of a fire engine and a few construction trucks. Residents who find it difficult to get to their homes because of road closures and police checkpoints have complained.
Residents of Lahaina and Kula were advised by Maui water officials not to drink running water because it may still be contaminated even after boiling. They were also advised to only take brief, lukewarm showers in well-ventilated spaces to prevent exposure to chemical vapours.
According to disaster and risk modelling company Karen Clark & Company, the wildfire is already expected to be the second-most expensive disaster in Hawaii history, only Hurricane Iniki in 1992, in terms of financial losses. Since the 2018 Camp Fire in California, which claimed at least 85 lives and decimated the town of Paradise, this fire has been the deadliest in the US.
It was well known that Maui was dangerous. Lahaina and other West Maui communities were identified as having frequent wildfires and several buildings at risk in the 2020 update to Maui County's hazard mitigation plan. West Maui had the second-highest percentage of households without a car and the highest percentage of non-English speakers, according to the report.
According to the plan, "this may limit the population's capacity to perceive, comprehend, and act promptly during hazard events."
The lack of personnel and equipment may have made it more difficult to put out the fire on Maui.
According to Bobby Lee, president of the Hawaii Firefighters Association, there are at most 65 county firefighters assigned to the three islands of Maui, Molokai, and Lanai at any given time.
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Riley Curran claimed that after scaling a nearby building for a better view, he left his Front Street home. He doesn't think county officials could have done more given how quickly the flames were approaching. Not that anyone tried to do anything, according to Curran. The fire increased from 0 to 100.
When Curran was a child, he claimed to have witnessed terrible wildfires in California. However, he continued, "I've never seen one eat an entire town in four hours."
