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KAHULUI, Hawaii: The death toll in Hawaii’s Maui Island has jumped to 80 as the rescue teams continue the operation. The fires began burning early on Tuesday, Aug. 8, putting 35,000 lives at risk, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency said in a statement. Four wildfires began spreading rapidly after winds from Hurricane Dora, out in the Pacific, whipped the island.
The fires became the deadliest natural disaster in the state’s history, surpassing that of a tsunami that killed 61 people on the Big Island of Hawaii in 1960, a year after Hawaii joined the United States.
The fires have also destroyed many natural features on the island – there are fears for Lahaina’s banyan tree, the oldest in Hawaii, and one of the oldest in the US.
The 60ft-tall (18m) fig tree was planted in 1873, on the place where Hawaiian King Kamehameha’s first palace stood, but it was burnt after fires ravaged the area on Wednesday.
According to the town’s website, if its roots remain healthy it will likely grow back. But at this stage, they say the tree “looks burned”.
Climate change is increasing the risk of wildfire globally as it drives up temperatures and makes heatwaves longer and more intense.
According to Governor Josh Green : “We have never experienced a wildfire that affected a city like this before.”
As evacuees wait to return to their homes, Pelletier, the police chief, told reporters it could be weeks before neighborhoods are reopened.