An aerial image showing destroyed homes and buildings in Lahaina.Photo:PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty
PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty
Although there are many in Hawaii who remain unaccounted for following thedevastating Maui wildfires, dozens of people were found sheltering together in the same home.
With the officialdeath toll from the Maui wildfires at 99 peopleas of Monday, authorities said in apress conferencethat the number will rise in the coming days. However, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen shared a bit of good news during his remarks.
“We discovered yesterday that there was a family that was housing 60 people at a home on the west side, and many of those folks were unaccounted for, and they’ve now been reunited with their families,” Bissen said.
The private home likely did not have power, internet or phone service, authorities said.
According to Reuters, about 1,130 people have been listed as “not located” on a crowd-sourced database that has been circulating on social media.
One survivor who gave hisfirst-hand account of the conditionswhen the fires broke out, told PEOPLE that “there was no opportunity to give a warning.”
“It was faster than anyone could have pushed a warning button, it was windy and then the fire started and it went fast,” saidParasailowner Dave Vogt. “It was hot, just like a torch, and the wind was so strong and swirling and the glow kept getting bigger and bigger.”
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Added charter boat business owner Keao Shaw,“there was black smoke everywhere."
“The fire was everywhere. It was up in the hills, it was down in the buildings, and [it was in] all the houses. It’s all the way down to the beach,” he said. “People were running for their lives.”
Andrew Jackson/Us Air/Planet Pix via ZUMA Press Wire
On Tuesday, PresidentJoe Bidenreaffirmed the federal government’s support as those on the island continue to search for residents and identify those who perished in the fire.
“Every asset, every asset they need will be there for them,” Biden said,according to ABC News. “And we will be there in Maui as long as it takes.”
He added, “Imagine being a mom or dad wondering where your child is. Imagine being a husband or wife, a mother, a father. It’s really tough stuff.”
The president and first lady will travel to Maui at some point, but Biden said he doesn’t “want to get in the way.”
“But I want to go, make sure we got everything they need,” he continued. “I want to be sure we don’t disrupt the ongoing recovery efforts.”
source: people.com
