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Hawaiian Electric has known for years that extreme weather was becoming a bigger danger, but the company did little to strengthen its equipment and failed to adopt emergency plans used elsewhere, like being prepared to cut off power to prevent fires. Before the wildfire on Maui erupted on Aug. 8, killing more than 100 people, many parts of Hawaiian Electric’s operations were showing signs of stress — and state lawmakers, consumer groups and county officials were saying that the company needed to make big changes. In 2019, Hawaiian Electric itself started citing the risk of fires. The company said that year that it was studying how utilities in California were dealing with similar threats. Two years later, in a report about Hurricane Lane in 2018, the Maui County government warned of the potential that “aboveground power lines that fail, short or are low-hanging can cause fire ignition (sparks) that could start a wildfire, particularly in windy or stormy conditions.”

Organizations: Electric, Hurricane Locations: Maui, California

☆ Hawaii's emergency siren warning system was silent during Maui wildfires
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Ray Sanchez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

Hawaii residents have long been accustomed to the monthly tests of the outdoor siren warning system. “Maui County faced a challenging, rapidly changing situation, and I think they did everything possible to save lives. Period.’Video Ad Feedback Video shows family's terrifying escape from Maui wildfires 01:18 - Source: CNNThe fire spread with such speed that many people left their homes immediately with little notice from authorities, Maui County Fire Chief Brad Ventura said. Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources/AP Burnt boats sit in waters off of Lahaina, Hawaii, on Friday. Phonoxaylinkham, his wife, and their five children were caught in the Lahaina wildfires and survived by exiting their car and spending four hours in the ocean as the west Maui wildfires raged around them.

Persons: Cole Millington, ” Millington, ”, Millington, …, –, Adam Weintraub, ” Weintraub, Weintraub, “, Allen Vu, Vu, Anne Lopez, Jill Tokuda, Karl Kim, Brad Ventura, ” Ventura, John Pelletier, Josh Green, Clay Trauernicht, Wedelin, Lee, Matthew Thayer, Patrick Fallon, Justin Sullivan, Rick Bowmer, Mike Blake, Zoltan Balogh, Zeran Harris, Robert Gauthier, Mengshin Lin, Evelio Contreras, CNN Vixay Phonxaylinkham, Lana, Phonoxaylinkham, Marco Garcia, Claire Rush, Myrna Ah Hee, Sui, Ty O'Neil, Ku'u Kauanoe, ZUMA, Patrick T, Fallon, Dustin Johnson, Lane, ” Kim, Brock Long, ‘, Rachel Zimmerman Organizations: CNN, Lahaina, Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, CNN Hawaii, National Disaster Preparedness Training Center, University of Hawaii, Maui County Fire, Maui County Police, Gov, Communication, National Weather Service, “, Maui Fire Department, Facebook, Firefighter, Fire Department, Maui News, AP Pacific Whale Foundation, Getty, Hawaii Department of Land, Natural Resources, Reuters, . Hawaii Department of Land, Los Angeles Times, AP, Washington Post, Kahului, Technologies, AP Hawaii Army National Guard, Hawaii National Guard, Reuters Residents, ZUMA Passengers, Federal Emergency Management Agency Locations: Lahaina . Millington, Maui, “, Hawaii, Lahaina, Millington, Maui County, Manoa, Honolulu, Olinda, Kula, Hanamu, Piʻiholo, Lahaina Bypass, Church, Lahaina Hongwanji, Lahaina , Hawaii, Maalaea, West Maui, AFP, Wailuku, Upcountry, Waiola, Kula , Hawaii, Kahului, California, Las Vegas, Kihei

Hawaii Army National Guard CH47 Chinook helicopters perform aerial water bucket drops on the island of Maui to assist with fight of wildfires in Maui, Hawaii, August 9, 2023. An out-of-control wildfire that began along a major Central Maui highway burns Thursday July 11, 2019, in Maui, Hawaii. “Especially when you have severe drought conditions like we have.”Despite these growing dangers, Hawaii state budgets for fire management have not kept pace with worsening conditions, according to the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, a nonprofit. Hawaii is hardly unique: As climate change is exacerbating natural disasters, state officials across the country are also struggling to respond to new threats. And it’s unclear how significantly additional preparedness and mitigation efforts could have reduced the destruction of a blaze with the intensity and speed of the Lahaina wildfire.

Persons: Pamela Brown’s, ”, Hurricane Dora, didn’t, Clay Trauernicht, Matthew Thayer, Abby Frazier, ” Nani Barretto, Gov, Sylvia Luke, “, Josh Stanbro, Josh Green, Frazier, ” “ Organizations: CNN, Hawaii Army National Guard, Hawaii National Guard, University of Hawaii, Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, Maui News, Clark University, Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, ” Locations: Hawaii, ”, Maui, Lahaina, Maui County, Central Maui, Massachusetts

☆ Survivor stories: Victims of Maui wildfires tell of watching Lahaina burn down
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Alaa Elassar | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN“The smoke started getting thicker and blacker,” Kaleiopu recalled. An emergency alert soon reached him by phone, urging Lahaina residents to flee: The smoke had given way to flames. Not far away on the ocean, boat captain Christina Lovitt soon found herself on a skiff, also trying to help. Stymied from anchoring by 70- to 80-mph gusts, they drifted and eventually were pulled onto a 120-foot boat, Lovitt recalled. Aguiran watched his parents’ house burn down, one of five family homes destroyed, Tacderan said, and among more than 270 structures declared impacted so far by the fire in Lahaina.

Persons: Phena Davis, “, Dustin Kaleiopu, Hurricane, ”, ” Kaleiopu, Davis, Bryan Aguiran, ” Aguiran, Teri Lawrence, Lawrence, you’re, Christina Lovitt, ” Lovitt, Lovitt, who’d, Reza Danesh, ’ ”, Danesh, He’d, Tiffany Kidder Winn, Aguiran, Ella Sable Tacderan, Tacderan, ‘ You’ll, I’m, I’ve, grandpa, ” Davis, “ We’re Organizations: CNN, “, Coast Guard, Hawaii Army National Guard, Hawaii National Guard, Reuters, MODO Mobile Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Kaanapali, Hawaiian, That’s, “, ”, New York, Wailuku Maui, Huelo

☆ These factors are making it hard to combat the deadly Maui wildfires
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Ray Sanchez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —The wildfires in Maui spread swiftly and turned deadly, stunning local officials who were quickly overwhelmed. Fueled by a combination of strong winds and dry conditions – and complicated by the island’s geography – the fires have killed at least 36 people. Moderate drought covers more than one-third of Maui, with some areas experiencing severe drought, according to the US Drought Monitor. Dried-out land and vegetation can provide fuel for wildfires, which then can swiftly turn deadly if strong winds help fan the flames toward communities. “These strong winds coupled with low humidity levels are producing dangerous fire weather conditions” through Wednesday afternoon, the weather service said.

Persons: ” Jennifer Marlon, ”, Clay Trauernicht, ” Marlon, Derek Van Dam, Abby Frazier, ” Frazier, Hurricane Dora, Niño, Frazier, Trauernicht, ” Trauernicht, –, we’ve Organizations: CNN, Yale School of, University of Hawaii, US Drought Monitor, Fourth, National Weather Service, Clark University in, El Nino, Pacific Fire Exchange, of Forestry, Wildlife Locations: Maui, Hawaii, Manoa, Santa Ana, Southern California, Oahu, Clark University in Massachusetts, “, Hurricane, Pacific, ” Hawaii, West Maui

☆ A devastating fire leveled their Maui home 5 years ago. Now it’s happened again
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Aya Elamroussi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Five years ago, the couple’s home turned into ashes when winds from Hurricane Lane helped fuel a fire that encroached onto their property in Lahaina. “I feel like I’m a veteran of disaster here,” Mark Stefl told CNN. “We ran downstairs, grabbed our dogs and cats … and the fire just engulfed our house,” said Mark Stefl, who added they lost a cat and a dog amid the chaos. “I’m literally thankful just to be alive right now,” Mark Stefl said. “It’s going to take years.”Still, Mark Stefl and his wife plan to rebuild – like they did once before.

Persons: Mark Stefl, Michele, –, Dora, Michele Numbers, “, ”, “ I’m, Lane, Gov, Sylvia Luke, ” Luke, “ It’s, We’ll Organizations: CNN, Hurricane Lane Locations: Hawaii, Hurricane, Lahaina, Maui, Maui County

On Tuesday they first saw flames under half a mile from their home, and when winds picked up, the fire suddenly was in their yard, Mark Stefl told CNN on Wednesday. While there’s enough shelter for an emergency response for a few days, “there’s not enough shelter for long term living,” the governor told CNN. • Hospitals overwhelmed: Hospitals on Maui were overwhelmed with burn patients and people suffering from smoke inhalation, Luke told CNN Wednesday. Fire burned buildings near Dickenson Street in Lahaina, Maui, on Tuesday. “I am told my house is gone, but we are not yet allowed access to West Maui,” he said.

Persons: Maureen Stefl, Mark Stefl, “, ” Mark Stefl, ”, Hurricane Dora, Gov, Sylvia Luke, weren’t, •, Luke, Josh Green, “ there’s, Joe Biden, Green, CNN’s Sara Sidner, Daniel Sullivan, inched, CNN’s Kaitlin Collins, Braintin Stevens, Ed Sniffen, Sniffen, Alan Dicker, ” Richie Olsten, CNN’s Jake Tapper, Alan Dickar, ” Dickar, Jeff Melichar, ” Luke, “ We’re, “ It’s, ” Stefl, Stefl, We’ll Organizations: CNN, they’ve, US Coast Guard, US Navy, • Cell, Hawaii Gov, •, Coast Guard, Hawaii Department of Transportation, Airlines, Southwest, Maui, Gov, Maxar Technologies, Hawaii’s Tourism Authority, Lahaina Heritage Museum, Baldwin Home Museum, Hing Locations: Maui, Lahaina, Hawaii, Wednesday, Alaska, Delta, United, Dickenson, West Maui, ”, India, Hawaii’s, It’s

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