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☆ Fact Check-Video shows lights in Florida, not Maui amid fires
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A video filmed at a Florida beach during a thunderstorm showing lights in the sky is being falsely shared as footage captured moments before the fire in Lahaina, in Hawaii’s Maui County, in August 2023. “Looks like a direct energy weapon to me,” reads a Facebook post sharing the video, which shows streaks of lights in the sky filmed from a shore (here). It was also shared on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, with the caption “What’s that in the Maui sky... just before the ‘fire’ #MauiFire” (here). Reuters has fact-checked similar false claims that DEWs or other secret attacks are to blame for the wildfires (here), (here). Video filmed at Florida beach predates Lahaina, Maui, fire in August 2023.

Persons: ”, Carmen Rich, Read Organizations: Reuters, Office, Naval Research, Google, YouTube, Media, Dogtooth Media Locations: Florida, Lahaina, Hawaii’s Maui County, Fort Lauderdale, Hawaii, Maui

☆ Hawaiian Electric engages with Guggenheim after Maui wildfire scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Aug 22 (Reuters) - Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE.N) said on Tuesday it was seeking advice from boutique advisory firm Guggenheim Securities, after questions were raised over the utility's role in the Maui wildfires. "We are seeking advice from various experts as we position HEI and Hawaiian Electric to be the strong, financially healthy local utility that the people of Maui and Hawai‘i need over the long term," the company said. Shares of Hawaiian Electric, which were down 2.4% at the open, reversed course, and were up 1.3% at $13.21 in afternoon trading. Fitch on Monday downgraded Hawaiian Electric's credit rating to junk status, becoming the third ratings agency to flag risks associated with the utility's potential exposure to liabilities related to the wildfire. Fitch said potential liabilities could be above $3.8 billion, which represents an "existential threat" to the company.

Persons: HEI, Fitch, Arunima Kumar, Arshreet Singh, Krishna Chandra Organizations: Hawaiian Electric Industries, Guggenheim Securities, Electric, Thomson Locations: Maui, Hawaii's, Honolulu, Lahaina . Fitch, Bengaluru

☆ Wildfire spreads on Spain's Tenerife, forcing thousands from homes
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

No major tourist areas have been affected. Weather conditions overnight were "better than expected" Tenerife's fire brigade said on Sunday on X, formerly known as Twitter. Fernando Clavijo, Canary Islands' regional leader, said the largest firefighting deployment in the history of Tenerife had so-far prevented the loss of any homes. Evacuations were ordered throughout Saturday due to worsening weather conditions. Popular tourist areas on Tenerife, part of the Canaries archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, have so far been unaffected and its two airports have been operating normally.

Persons: Fernando Clavijo, Rosa Davila, Jessica Jones, Nacho, Frances Kerry, Susan Fenton Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, Rights TENERIFE, Europe, Spain's La Palma, Canada, Maui, Lahaina

☆ Wildfire on Spanish island forces more evacuations
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] A view shows fire over the mountains in the village of La Victoria, as wildfires rage out of control on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain August 19, 2023. REUTERS/Nacho Doce Acquire Licensing RightsTENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug 19 (Reuters) - More people were evacuated from their homes on the Spanish island of Tenerife on Saturday morning as a wildfire raging in the north of the island remained out of control, but the flames have so far avoided major tourist areas. The blaze broke out on Wednesday in a mountainous national park around the Mount Teide volcano - Spain's highest peak - amid hot and dry weather. Scorching heat and dry weather this summer have contributed to unusually severe wildfires in Europe and Canada. Blazes on Hawaii's Maui island earlier this month killed more than 110 people and wrecked the historic resort city of Lahaina.

Persons: Fernando Clavijo, Clavijo, Manuel Miranda, Miranda, Nacho Doce, Jessica Jones, Clelia Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Territorial Policy, Thomson Locations: La Victoria, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, Rights TENERIFE, Europe, Canada, Maui, Lahaina

☆ Tens of thousands evacuated as wildfire burns out of control on Spain's Tenerife
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Thousands more people were evacuated from their homes on the Spanish island of Tenerife on Saturday as a wildfire raging in the north of the island remained out of control, but the flames have so far avoided major tourist areas. The Canary Islands emergency services said more than 26,000 people had been evacuated by Saturday afternoon, according to provisional estimates, a sharp rise from 4,500 on Friday. The fire was at a scale that has never been seen before in the Canary Islands, Tenerife Council President Rosa Davila told reporters. [1/6]Samuel, 34, uses binoculars in the village of La Victoria, as wildfires rage out of control on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain August 19, 2023. In La Victoria, in the north-west of the island, some people who had been evacuated were receiving medical help.

Persons: Fernando Clavijo, President Rosa Davila, Samuel, Paulina Fernandez, Nacho Doce, Jessica Jones, Clelia Organizations: Saturday, President, REUTERS, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Tenerife, La Victoria, Europe, Spain's La Palma, Canada, Maui, Lahaina

☆ On Maui, a perfect storm of climate, colonialism, and failed emergency systems made the deadliest US wildfire in over a century
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Maiya Focht | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

A deadly wildfire raged through the Hawaiian town of Lahaina, killing at least 111 people, last week. Aerial view shows destroyed homes and buildings near Front Street in Lahaina Town on August 10, 2023. Colonialism: Plantations brought the perfect wildfire fuel, an invasive grassLahaina was once the capital of the indigenous Hawaiian kingdom. Smoke and flames rise in Lahaina, Maui County, Hawaii, U.S., August 8, 2023 in this still image from video obtained from social media. A Mercy Worldwide volunteer makes damage assessment of charred apartment complex in the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, western Maui, Hawaii on August 12, 2023.

Persons: Patrick T, Fallon, Jeff Masters, YUKI IWAMURA, Clay Trauernicht, Erin Hawk, We've, Abby Frazier, PATRICK T, FALLON, Dora, Dora didn't, Judson Jones, Jeff Melichar, didn't, Anne Lopez, Herman Andaya Organizations: Service, Getty, Yale, Washington Post, Plantations, Hawaii Public Radio, University of Hawaii, Maui . Flames, Reuters, Clark University, New York Times, REUTERS, ABC7, Mercy Worldwide Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Lahaina Town, Hawaii, U.S, Maui County, AFP

TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug 18 (Reuters) - A wildfire that has blanketed much of the Spanish island of Tenerife with smoke and ash has slowed its advance thanks to containment efforts and more favourable weather during the night, authorities said on Friday. Fernando Clavijo, regional leader of the Canary Islands, said there were no more evacuations overnight and officials were considering lifting restrictions on almost 4,000 residents who had been ordered to stay home. [1/2]Pine trees burn in a forest fire in Candelaria on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain August 16, 2023. Scorching heat and dry weather this summer have contributed to unusually severe wildfires in Europe and Canada. On Friday, Spain's AEMET weather service expected maximum temperatures of 32C in Tenerife.

Persons: Fernando Clavijo, We've, Borja Suarez, Mount Teide, Andrei Khalip, Frances Kerry Organizations: REUTERS, Teide Astrophysics, Thomson Locations: TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Spanish, Tenerife, Candelaria, Europe, Canada, Maui, Lahaina

TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Firefighters on Thursday struggled to contain a wildfire that broke out in a mountainous national park on the Spanish island of Tenerife, prompting authorities to evacuate at least 3,800 people. "The night has been very tough...This is the most complex fire we've had in the Canary Islands in the last 40 years," the region's leader, Fernando Clavijo, told a news conference. [1/5]EIRIF forest firefighters work during the extinction of the forest fire in Arafo on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain August 16, 2023. Last week, a heatwave in the Canary Islands left many areas bone dry, heightening the risk of wildfires. This summer, firefighters have extinguished a series of forest fires on the islands of Gran Canaria and La Palma, which form part of the Canary Islands archipelago.

Persons: Alba Gil, we've, Fernando Clavijo, Pedro Martinez, Borja Suarez, Clavijo, Teide, Aena, Andrei Khalip, Christina Fincher, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: REUTERS, Authorities, Gran Canaria, La, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Tenerife, La Esperanza, Canary, Europe, Canada, Lahaina, Arafo, El Rosario, La Orotava, Spanish, Gran

☆ Putin playground statue targeted by kids
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Jeremy Schultz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Wildfires fanned by winds of a distant hurricane are devastating much of Hawaii's Maui island, forcing thousands to evacuate as some people fled into the ocean to escape the smoke and flames.

Locations: Hawaii's Maui

☆ Hawaii wildfires: How did the Maui fire start and what we know about the Lahaina blaze?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Jonathan Oatis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Wildfires on Hawaii's Maui island and Big Island have killed at least 55 people, forced thousands of residents and tourists to evacuate, and devastated the historic resort city of Lahaina. WHAT'S DRIVING THE HAWAII WILDFIRES? Winds from Hurricane Dora, hundreds of miles southwest of the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean, have fanned the flames across the U.S. state, officials say. There was no estimate for the Upcountry fire in the mountainous center of the eastern mass of the island, Maui County said. The island of Maui lies to the north and west of the island of Hawaii.

Persons: Elizabeth Pickett, Dora, Pickett, Jonathan Oatis, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: National Weather Service, Islands, U.S . Forest Service, Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, Maui ., Honolulu Star, U.S . Civil Air Patrol, Maui Fire Department, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Maui, Big, Lahaina, U.S, Hawaii, Europe, Canada, HAWAII, Hurricane Dora, Japan, Guinea, Maui County

☆ Maui wildfire death toll of 55 expected to rise amid search for victims
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Marco Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

KAHULUI, Hawaii, Aug 11 (Reuters) - The death toll from a wildfire that killed at least 55 people on Hawaii's Maui island was expected to rise on Friday, as search teams prepared to comb through the charred ruins of a historic resort town for more victims. "Understand this: Lahaina Town is hallowed, sacred ground right now," Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said, referring to humans remains that have yet to be recovered. In addition to searching for the missing, officials were drafting a plan to house the newly homeless in hotels and tourist rental properties. The Lahaina fire is one of three major wildfires on Maui. There was no estimate for the Upcountry fire in the center of the eastern mass of the island, Maui County said.

Persons: John Pelletier, Poweroutage.us, Richard Bissen, NBC's, Knickerbocker, Josh Green, Green, Kamehameha III's, Gregory Knickerbocker, Nicoangelo, Brendan O'Brien, Frank McGurty, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Maui Police, Authorities, U.S . Midwest, Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, Thomson Locations: KAHULUI, Hawaii, Maui, Lahaina, California, Washington, Maui County, Oahu, Kahului, U.S, Kingdom of Hawaii, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Europe, Canada, East Coast, Maui ., Chicago

☆ Hawaii wildfires raze resort city on Maui island, killing dozens
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Marco Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Hawaii Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke said late on Wednesday that officials were still assessing the damage. The cause of the Maui wildfires had yet to be determined, but the National Weather Service said a mix of dry vegetation, strong winds, and low humidity fueled the fast-moving conflagration. THREE SEPARATE BLAZESFirefighters were battling three separate blazes on the island, officials said late on Wednesday night, without providing further details. An aerial view shows damage along the coast of Lahaina in the aftermath of wildfires in Maui, Hawaii, U.S. August 9, 2023 this screen grab obtained from social media video. More than 11,000 travelers were evacuated from Maui, Ed Sniffen of the Hawaii Department of Transportation said late on Wednesday.

Persons: Dustin Kaleiopu, Kaleiopu, Sylvia Luke, Thomas Smith, Richard Bissen, Richard Olsten, Kamehameha III's, flyovers, Julius Limbaga, Limbaga, Ed Sniffen, Rich McKay, Brendan O'Brien, Frank McGurty, Angus MacSwan, Alex Richardson, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Hawaiian Kingdom, NBC, National Weather Service, London School of Economics, Political, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics Maui, Air Maui Helicopters, REUTERS, Honolulu Star, U.S . Civil Air Patrol, Maui Fire Department, Coast Guard, U.S . Coast Guard, Hawaii Department of Transportation, Kahului, Thomson Locations: Maui, Europe, Canada, Hawaii, Lahaina, Hawaiian, U.S, Lahaina ., Kula, South Maui, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Hurricane Dora, Oahu, West Maui, Atlanta, Chicago

☆ Hawaii wildfires: How did the Maui blazes start and what we know about the damage to Lahaina
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Jonathan Oatis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

An aerial view shows smoke as wildfires ravage the island in Maui, Hawaii, August 9, 2023. WHAT'S DRIVING THE HAWAII WILDFIRES? Winds from Hurricane Dora, hundreds of miles southwest of the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean, have fanned the flames across the U.S. state, officials say. It is made up of eight main islands, including Hawaii, known as the Big Island. The island of Maui sits to the east of the island of Hawaii.

Persons: Dora, Jonathan Oatis, Andrew Hay, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: REUTERS, National Weather Service, Islands, U.S . Forest Service, Maui ., Honolulu Star, U.S . Civil Air Patrol, Maui Fire Department, Reuters Graphics, Thomson Locations: Maui, Hawaii, County, Handout, Big, Lahaina, U.S, Europe, Canada, HAWAII, Hurricane Dora, Japan, Guinea, Kihei, South Maui, Kula

The American Red Cross opened an evacuation center in Maui High School, the county said. Six people had been confirmed killed by the fires, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen said at a press conference. Despite the high winds, they went on a tour to a different part of the island. Hawaii County encompasses the Big Island, which lies south of Maui. Gale warnings remained in effect for all of the Hawaiian islands, with high winds of 45 mph with gusts of 60 mph possible.

Persons: Richard Bissen, Dustin Johnson, Jolie Campbell, Conner Campbell, Alan Dickar, what's, Sylvia Luke, Mahina Martin, Hurricane Dora, Gale, Ian Martin, Marco Garcia, Rich McKay, Brendan O'Brien, Julia Harte, Aurora Ellis Organizations: U.S . Coast Guard, Cross, Maui High School, Lahaina, Reuters, Kahului, Honolulu Star, Reuters Graphics Reuters, National Weather Service, University of Hawaii, National Hurricane Center, NWS, Thomson Locations: KAHULUI, Hawaii, Maui County, Maui, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Europe, San Diego, West, Lahaina, Cincinnati, Dickar, Maui Counties, Kula, Lahaina . West Maui, South Maui, Hurricane, Honolulu

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