Among piles of ash, buildings in ruins and the shells of burnt vehicles, intensive and painstaking work is underway to locate and count victims in the coastal town of Lahaina on the island of Maui.
Efforts after the devastating fires that hit Hawaii are now mainly focused on the loss of life and locating the people who fell victim to the fire inferno, according to Hawaii Governor Josh Green.
– Most of our focus will be on people today, Josh Green told AP on Saturday afternoon, local time.
A few hours later, Josh Green confirmed that the death toll from the fires had risen to 89, making it the deadliest wildfire in the United States in over 100 years.
Buildings are highlighted
The United States disaster agency FEMA, in the search for victims in Lahaina, has sprayed buildings and cars with an “X” to mark that they were looking for bodies at the site and “HR” (human remains) when human remains were found.
Only about three percent of the fire-ravaged area has been searched so far, according to Maui Police Chief John Pelletier.
At the same time, only two of the 89 confirmed dead have been identified. The bodies have been so badly damaged by the fire that identification must be done with the help of DNA samples.
– When we pick up the remains, they fall apart… When we find our family and friends, the remains have gone through fire that melted metal, says Pelletier.
It is unclear how the morgues will cope with the rising death toll, given that there is only one hospital and three morgues on the island.
Large number missing
In addition to the deaths confirmed so far, close to 1,000 people are missing after the fires, according to the BBC. And the death toll will continue to rise, says Josh Green.
It will surely be the worst natural disaster Hawaii has ever experienced. We can only wait and give support to those who are alive. Our focus now is to reunite people when we can, provide them with temporary housing and medical care, and then focus on rebuilding, he says.
More than 2,200 buildings were damaged or destroyed in the fire, according to official estimates. Rescue workers are now working feverishly to find temporary shelters for everyone who is now without a home.
At the same time, criticism of the authorities is growing because residents were not warned in time. The sirens deployed to warn of natural disasters did not wail.
63-year-old Vilma Reed lives today in a car together with her daughter, her grandson and two cats. She only realized it was on fire when she saw the fire on the other side of the road, just meters from her home.
– The mountain behind us was in flames and no one said anything, she says.