At Least 36 Dead in Maui Fires as Visitors Urged To Leave Any Way Possible

The death toll rose to 36 people after out-of-control fires that started on Maui Tuesday left the historic tourist area of Lahaina 'devastated.'

Officials said earlier that 271 structures on the island were damaged or destroyed and dozens of people injured.

Among those injured were three people with critical burns who were flown to Straub Medical Center’s burn unit on the island of Oahu, officials said. At least 20 patients were taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center, officials said, and a firefighter was stable at a hospital after inhaling smoke.

Lt. Gov. Sylvia Lake said she had seen what was left of the tourist hub on an aerial tour on a Coast Guard plane.

“The whole town was devastated. The whole town was decimated,” Lake said at a Wednesday evening news conference.

The state has applied to have the situation declared a national disaster so that federal money could be freed up to help with the recovery efforts, she said.

"People in Maui are suffering," Lake added.

Airlines have increased flights and brought in larger aircraft to help get people off of the island.

Part of the Hawaiʻi Convention Center in Honolulu was being prepared to shelter about 2,000 arriving tourists and locals. Most of the hotel rooms in the city were booked, but rooms in other areas in Hawaii were still available.

Director Ed Sniffen of the Hawaii Department of Transportation said that around 11,000 people were evacuated from Maui on Wednesday, but he noted that flights had empty seats because people were having difficulty getting to the airport due to closed roads. Maui County was running buses to the airport to help. 

About 600 people stayed at the airport on Wednesday night.

The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora, which was passing to the south of the island chain, was partly to blame for the strong winds that pushed several fires across Maui Tuesday and Wednesday.

State officials said the wildfires across Maui were mostly under control late Wednesday but crews were still dealing with flare-ups. The cause of the fires remained unknown.

About 11,000 power outages across the island were still reported Wednesday evening local time, according to PowerOutage.us.

Damage assessments were still underway late Wednesday.

“The road to recovery will be long,” Lake said. “The road to recovery will be long,” Lake said. “We need to find a way to help people for the next several years.  It’s going to take years.”

Gov. Josh Green was due back in the state early on Thursday. He had been gone since late last month for what he called a family reunion in a video message posted to Facebook. Green cut his trip short by eight days.