(CN) — Wildfires on Maui have raged for over 24 hours, devastating the island’s historic Lahaina Town and killing at least 36.
As wildfires spread across Lahaina Town, a historically significant and tourist-dense town on the island of Maui, officials on Wednesday pushed to evacuate the area and called for backup from the National Guard.
A statement from Maui County late Wednesday announced the death toll but said no other details were available. Officials said earlier that 271 structures were damaged or destroyed and dozens of people injured. Officials warned the death toll could rise.
At least three separate fires have yet to be contained on the Valley Isle, despite the tireless work of hundreds of firefighters and U.S. military assistance. Local officials said in a Wednesday morning press conference that the Lahaina fire in west Maui is still experiencing flare-ups, while separate fires in Kula and Kihei are also ongoing.
Maui Mayor Richard Bissen had confirmed at least six fatalities on the island, along with yet untold property and business losses. Six patients had also been taken to Oahu via medevac, including three burn victims transported to Straub Medical Center, home to the state’s only burn unit. One firefighter was injured after inhaling smoke, and was hospitalized but is in stable condition.
Videos posted online show buildings engulfed in flames on Front Street, a travel destination in Lahaina. Some fleeing the fires and smoky air took to the ocean, where they were rescued by the Coast Guard, officials said.
The wildfires have been attributed to an unfortunate confluence of environmental factors, including recent unusual low humidity, dry grass and brush, and intense winds from both a storm system to the north of the islands and Category 4 Hurricane Dora, passing below the islands. Officials said that there has not yet been any investigation done on the exact cause of ignition.
County of Maui officials warned people to stay away from the West Maui tourist destination where 911 service has gone down, as responders fight blazes there and in Maui upcountry, a mountainous region inland. Around 14,500 customers on the island lost power early Wednesday.
Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke, acting governor while Governor Josh Green is off-island, expressed shock at the disaster.
“In the state of Hawaii when we are preparing for a hurricane, we expect rain, sometimes we expect floods. We never anticipated that this hurricane, which did not make impact on our islands, would cause this type of wildfires. Wildfires that wiped out communities, wildfires that wiped out businesses, wildfires that destroyed homes,” she said.
Green is expected to return to the islands by Wednesday night. He and other Hawaii legislators have called on the White House for federal assistance.
President Joe Biden, in a statement Wednesday, said that all federal assets in Hawaii have been ordered to help response and recovery efforts.
“The Hawaiian National Guard has mobilized Chinook Helicopters to help with fire suppression and search and rescue on the Island of Maui. The U.S. Coast Guard and Navy Third Fleets are supporting response and rescue efforts. The U.S. Marines are providing Black Hawk Helicopters to fight the fires on the Big Island. The Department of Transportation is working with commercial airlines to evacuate tourists from Maui, and the Department of the Interior and the United States Department of Agriculture stand ready to support post fire recovery efforts,” the president said in the statement.
"Do NOT go to Lahaina Town," the County of Maui tweeted hours before all roads in and out of West Maui's biggest community were closed to everyone except emergency personnel.
County officials asked those outside of evacuation areas to shelter in place to mitigate heavy traffic, as evacuees sought to escape winds faster than 60 miles per hour that took out power and grounded helicopters fighting the fires.
The Coast Guard tweeted Wednesday that a crew rescued 12 people from the water off Lahaina and that it was “en route to Maui to enhance efforts.”
Maui County spokesperson Mahina Martin echoed Lieutenant Governor Luke in deeming the fires “unprecedented.”
"It's definitely one of the more challenging days for our island given that it's multiple fires, multiple evacuations in the different district areas," Martin said.
Five shelters are open for evacuees, the largest holding more than 1,000 people. Officials have been working to get thousands of tourists and other evacuees out of Maui and at least to Oahu, where the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu is being turned into shelter.
The state has discouraged Maui visitors from flying into the island, and to make alternate travel plans for their Hawaii vacations. Airlines have offered fares at extremely reduced prices or refunds on tickets.
“This is not going to be short journey. It’s going to take weeks, maybe months, to assess the full damage. The state will provide whatever assistance. The state will provide whatever assistance,” Luke said. “You can already see that the city and county of Honolulu is working with us to provide transportation services from the airport to the convention center. Big island, in spite of the fact that they are also suffering from wildfires is opening up its home to Maui residents. And Kauai has also offered help. So, this is the entire state coming together to assist our ohana on Maui.”
The Big Island has also been battling several, through less devastating, wildfires through the past days. Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth said Wednesday that those fires had yet to be contained, but that priority should lie with Maui.
The wildfires are being called the largest natural disaster in Hawaii since Hurricane Iniki, which destroyed Kauai in 1992. Though videos on social media have shown apocalyptic views of Lahaina Town on fire and essentially leveled to the ground, one spot of hope came in the form of pictures and videos posted of Lahaina’s giant banyan tree, the largest in the U.S., which appeared to still be standing amongst the rubble.
Known for its rich history, Lahaina was conquered in the late 18th century by Kamehameha the Great and served as the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1820 until 1845, when Honolulu took its place. Its historic district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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