The death toll from the fires in Hawaii, which is already approaching 100 dead, could increase considerably this week, warned the governor of the American archipelago Josh Green, saying to expect that the helpers find “10 to 20 ” corpses a day. “They’ll probably find 10 to 20 people a day until they’re done,” Josh Green said in an interview aired Monday by CBS. according to him, the search operations will last “probably another 10 days” and the final assessment is currently “impossible to guess”.
America’s deadliest fire in a century
According to the latest provisional report, the fire which almost destroyed the town of Lahaina, on the island of Maui, killed 96 people. This makes it the deadliest fire suffered by the United States in a century. Sniffer dogs are currently on hand to search the rubble, but they still have a lot of ground to cover.
The former capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii was almost razed by fire and the damage is immeasurable so far. The city, which was home to 12,000 people, appears to have been bombed, with thousands of buildings reduced to piles of greyish ash. “To be completely honest, there’s nothing to see except utter devastation,” acknowledged Governor Green, who visited the scene last week.
1,300 people still missing
As communications begin to be restored on the island, the number of people counted as missing is falling: it currently stands at 1,300 individuals, according to the governor, against 2,000 previously. “Our hearts are going to break beyond repair if it means there are that many deaths,” he said.
Authorities believe the toll won’t be as heavy, but “we’re preparing for many tragic stories,” Green said.