53 killed in Maui wildfires with death toll likely to rise further, Hawaii governor says

A search of the wildfire devastation on the Hawaiian island of Maui on Thursday revealed a wasteland of obliterated neighbourhoods and landmarks charred beyond recognition, as the death toll rose to at least 53 and survivors told harrowing tales of narrow escapes with only the clothes on their backs.

A flyover of historic Lahaina showed entire neighbourhoods that had been a vibrant vision of colour and island life reduced to grey ash.

Block after block was nothing but rubble and blackened foundations, including along famous Front Street, where tourists shopped and dined just days ago.

Boats in the harbour were scorched, and smoke hovered over the town, which dates to the 1700s and is the biggest community on the island's west side.

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Active fires and plumes of smoke rose from a landscape of destroyed buildings in what was left of the historic town of Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui. At the town's gathering place, Banyan Court, trees charred in the wildfires include a 150 year old banyan tree.

"Lahaina, with a few rare exceptions, has been burned down," Hawaii Gov. JoshGreen told The Associated Press. More than 1,000 structures were destroyed by fires that were still burning, he said.

Already the state's deadliest natural disaster since a 1960 tsunami killed 61 people on the Big Island, the death toll will likely rise further as search-and-rescue operations continue, Green added.

"We are heartsick," hesaid.

'All the landmarks were gone'

Tiffany Kidder Winn's gift store Whaler's Locker, which is one of the town's oldest shops, was among the many businesses destroyed.

As she assessed the damage on Thursday, she came upon a line of burned-out vehicles, some with charred bodies inside them.

"It looked like they were trying to get outbut were stuck in traffic and couldn't get off Front Street," Winnsaid.

She later spotted a body leaning against a seawall.

Winn said the destruction was so widespread, "I couldn't even tell where I was because all the landmarks were gone."

Vixay Phonxaylinkham, a tourist from Fresno, Calif., described being trapped on Lahaina's Front Street in a rental car with his wife and children as the fires approached, forcing the family to abandon the car and jump into the Pacific Ocean.

"We floated around four hours," Phonxaylinkham told Reutersfrom the airport while waiting for a flight off the island, describing how they held onto pieces of wood for floatation.

"It was a vacation that turned into a nightmare. I heard explosions everywhere, I heard screaming, and some people didn't make it. I feel so sad," he said.

Deadliest U.S. wildfire since 2018

Fuelled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, the fire started on Tuesday and took Maui by surprise, racing through parched growth covering the island and then feasting on homes and anything else that lay in its path.

The official death toll of 53 as of Thursday makes this the deadliest U.S. wildfire since the 2018 Camp Fire in California, which killed at least 85 people and laid waste to the town of Paradise.

The Hawaii toll could rise, though, as rescuers reach parts of the island that had been inaccessible due to the three ongoing fires, including the one in Lahaina that was 80 per centcontained on Thursday, according to a Maui County news release.Dozens of people have been injured, some critically.

"We are still in life preservation mode. Search and rescue is still a primary concern," said Adam Weintraub, a spokesperson for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

Search-and-rescue teams still won't be able to access certain areas until the fire lines are secure and access is safe, Weintraub said.

'The fire didn't stop'

The flames left some people with mere minutes to act and led some to flee into the ocean.

A Lahaina man, Bosco Bae, posted video on Facebook from Tuesday night that showed fire burning nearly every building on a street as sirens blared and windblown sparks raced by.

Bae, who said he was one of the last people to leave the town, was evacuated to the island's main airport and was waiting to be allowed to return home.

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Vacationers share their stories of the devastating Maui wildfires after landing at Vancouver International Airport.

Marlon Vasquez, a 31-year-old cook from Guatemala who came to the United Statesin January 2022, said that when he heard the fire alarms, it was already too late to flee in his car.

"I opened the door and the fire was almost on top of us," he told AP on Thursday from an evacuation centre at a gymnasium.

"We ran and ran. We ran almost the whole night and into the next day, because the fire didn't stop."

Vasquez and his brother Eduardo escaped via roads that were clogged with vehicles full of people.

The smoke was so toxic that he vomited. He said he's not sure his roommates and neighbours made it to safety.

'We barely made it out'

Lahaina residents Kamuela Kawaakoa and Iiulia Yasso described their harrowing escape under smoke-filled skies.

The couple and their six-year-old son got back to their apartment after a quick dash to the supermarket for water, and only had time to grab a change of clothes and run as the bushes around them caught fire.

"We barely made it out," Kawaakoa, 34, said at an evacuation shelter, still unsure if anything was left of their apartment.

As the family fled, they called 911 when they saw the Hale Mahaolu senior living facility across the road erupt in flames.

Chelsey Vierra's grandmother, Louise Abihai, was living at Hale Mahaolu, and the family doesn't know if she got out.

"She doesn't have a phone. She's 97 years old," Vierra said Thursday. "She can walk. She is strong."

Relatives are monitoring shelter lists and calling the hospital.

Communications have been spotty on the island, with 911, landline and cellular service failing at times. Power was also out in parts of Maui.

Tourists were advised to stay away, and about 11,000 flew out of Maui on Wednesday with at least 1,500 more expected to leave on Thursday, saidEd Sniffen, state transportation director. Officials prepared the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu to receievethousands.

Global Affairs Canada is advising people to avoid non-essential travel to Maui.

"Global Affairs is not aware of any Canadians who have been killed or injured as a result of these wildfires," it said in a statement.

The federal government is asking Canadians in need of emergency assistance in Hawaii to call Global Affairs Canada's Emergency Watch and Response Centre at 613-996-8885 (collect calls are accepted where available), by text message at +1 613-686-3658, via Telegram at Canada Emergency Abroad, via WhatsApp at +1 613-909-8881, or via Signal at +1-613-909-8087. They can also send an email to sos@international.gc.ca.