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On August 8, 2023, local time, a fire broke out on the island of Maui, Hawaii, USA, igniting at least three wildfire sites, covering an area of 800 hectares, which is the largest and deadliest wildfire in Hawaii's history, and Hawaii has entered a state of full emergency.
As of today, the death toll has reached 80, with some forced to jump into the sea to survive. Thousands of buildings were burned, the island's communications network was destroyed, and research firms said the damage caused by the fire was at least $1.3 billion. The place after the fire was reduced to ashes, and what was once a tourist attraction is now a ghost town.
Wildfires occur
This past week, a rare drought spread across Hawaii, drying up the land and drying up vegetation. Maui's severe drought area rose to 16 percent from 5 percent last week.
At this time, southern Hawaii was devastated by Category 4 Hurricane Dora, which caused strong winds on Maui.
When fires erupt, dry vegetation increases the area burnable, and strong winds increase the rate at which wildfires spread.
It is not yet clear whether extreme weather is the cause of the fires. But we know that droughts and hurricanes must be accomplices in the power of fires.
Life and death escape
When the fire broke out, the alarm on the island was not activated, which made people miss the first time to escape, and although other levels of alarm systems such as mobile phones, television, radio, etc. reported fire warnings, some people still missed the golden escape period.
In Maui, the network communication conditions are poor, people in slightly remote areas can only see black smoke rising in the sky, but they do not know what happened, there is no radio, television and other signal reminders, and by the time the news is delivered, it is imminent.
The fire raged and everything burned everywhere it went, and the hurricane drove the wildfire to engulf the next building more rapidly, and Maui soon turned into a sea of fire.
Combustion produces a large amount of black smoke that deprives people of oxygen for survival, and there are even toxic gases produced by combustion in the air. The temperature also rose sharply due to the fire. People were in a sea of fire, incomparably hot, and their clothes seemed to be burned. The gasoline car on the side of the road exploded as soon as it caught fire, and a huge rumble shook the eardrums, and the debris was like a rain of bullets that injured the fleeing people.
The lack of oxygen suffocates the brain, and the pervasive black smoke, chaotic crowds and collapsing buildings affect people's thinking about survival, and some people hurriedly jump into the sea to take refuge.
When a tourist with his family was caught in the fire, there was no one to rescue them, so they had to jump into the sea with their wife and children in search of a chance to survive, but fortunately they found a floating board, and although the waves were about to scatter them, they survived.
When I finally got out of the danger zone and drove on the highway, I relaxed a little to look at the surrounding situation, the cars on fire, the people stuck in the road, and the city buried in the sea of fire behind them, all of which are like the apocalyptic escape scene in a horror movie, which is terrifying.
Post-disaster relief
After emergency treatment, 80% of the fires in the hardest-hit areas have been controlled, and 50% and 80% of the remaining two ignition points have been controlled, respectively.
Search and rescue teams rush to rescue easily searchable victims on the exterior of buildings and streets, while deeper searches will not begin until later, which means that the death toll may increase.
Local residents spontaneously joined in and fished out the bodies from the sea, and there were still many bodies floating on the sea, because during the fire, there was also a huge explosion at the yacht and gas station in the parked port, killing some of the people who escaped from the sea.
Maui police leaders told the media that there were not enough relief forces on the island, and there were no communications and radio broadcasts, which greatly hindered various efforts during the disaster period. According to estimates by relevant departments, about 1,000 people have been missing.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green announced on the 11th that residents in the hardest-hit areas can return to their homes, but do not enter burned or damaged buildings, because they may collapse at any time, and let the people be mentally prepared, because they will see the once beautiful homes into ruins.
Water and electricity are still cut off in Lahaina, and Green said a curfew would be imposed to provide displaced people with access to temporary residences.
Biden stated that he had ordered the mobilization of federal assets to extinguish wildfires.
HHS Secretary declared a public health emergency officially declared the state of Hawaii and gave health care providers greater flexibility to meet medical needs.
Batches of food, medical and other supplies were transported to the disaster area.
By the 11th, 14,000 people had been evacuated from Maui, and the local government was arranging for others to evacuate.
After the disaster, Maui lost its color and became a gray ruin. Black smoke rose from the burnt tree trunks, the remains of car frames on the street, all buildings and the ground were covered with black-gray ash, even the sea near land was stained with black incendiary matter, the street smelled unknown, and the smell of death enveloped the island.
A historic U.S. site that attracts 2 million visitors a year, Maui is now a ghost town. Viewed from aerial photography, it looks like a war zone after being bombed.
According to a well-known disaster modeling firm, the fire damaged about 3,500 buildings, at least $1.3 billion in damage, and estimated billions of dollars to rebuild.
Amazon founder Bezos and his fiancée said they would donate $100 million to help rebuild after the disaster.
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One of the core reasons why the disaster caused so much damage was Maui's inadequate fire response system. When the fire first started, there were more than 80 sirens on the island to alert residents in the face of emergencies, but they did not sound at the time, and the island's rescue force was insufficient, so that some people missed the best time to rescue and died.
In fact, as early as 21 years, there was a report warning local officials to improve the fire response system, pointing out that the county fire department's strategic plan did not have any measures that could or should be used to prevent fires, which was a "gross negligence", and recommended a thorough risk assessment of the fire. It just didn't attract attention in the end. In fact, we usually have to take precautions and take measures to deal with accidents, after all, we are not afraid of 10,000 in case, don't wait until that day comes, regret is too late.
The Chinese Consulate issued a reminder on the 11th, asking local Chinese citizens to protect themselves and follow the alienation of local departments.
In case of emergency, please call 911 in time. (Chinese service available on request)
For protection and assistance, please call: +86-10-12308, +86-10-65612308.
Wildfires are so terrifying, so how can we escape if we are trapped in them? Here are some ways for you:
1. Protect the skin and respiratory system as much as possible: use towels, clothes, socks, etc. to soak the body with water to protect our skin from burns and cooling, cover your mouth and nose with a wet towel, many toxic gases will be produced in the fire, which can reduce the inhalation of toxic gases by the respiratory tract.
2. Find cover: Look for non-combustible objects such as stones and iron objects, hide behind them, and avoid fire.
4. Call the fire alarm or seek other help: If you cannot escape the fire, you should call the emergency number of the local fire, police or rescue department in time to ask them for help.