Apr 17 Maui Fire Department report on deadly wildfire details how it was no match for unprecedented blazes By Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, Rebecca Boone, Claudia Lauer, Associated Press When wildfires broke out across the Hawaiian island of Maui last August, some firefighters carried victims piggyback over downed power lines to safety and sheltered survivors inside their fire engines. Continue reading
Nov 24 Maui residents want independent testing to determine when it’s safe to return to burned town By Rebecca Boone, Associated Press The rubble left behind includes electrical cables, plastic pipes and vehicle tires that emit dangerous dioxins when burned; lead from melted vehicles or old house paint; and arsenic-laden ash from termite-resistant building materials. Continue reading
Nov 17 Watch 8:27 Maui faces water rights questions as island continues wildfire recovery By William Brangham, Maea Lenei Buhre, Sam Lane The deadly wildfires that tore through Maui destroyed thousands of structures and killed 100 people. But as William Brangham reports, they also reignited a long-simmering concern among Native Hawaiians over who controls one of their most precious natural resources, water. Continue watching
Oct 24 West Maui to reopen to tourism on Nov. 1 after fire By Audrey McAvoy, Associated Press The community has had an impassioned debate about when to welcome travelers back to the disaster-stricken region. Some residents drafted a petition opposing the return of tourists, saying the community wasn't ready. Continue reading
Oct 09 Watch 5:34 Native Hawaiians push to preserve history and heritage following Maui wildfires By Amna Nawaz, Ian Couzens On this Indigenous Peoples' Day, we're taking a closer look at the cultural heritage lost in the devastating Maui fires. Amna Nawaz spoke with Rosalyn LaPier, a professor of history at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, about what Native Hawaiian… Continue watching
Sep 28 WATCH: House committee holds hearing on Maui fires and electrical grids By Rebecca Boone, Associated Press Hawaii’s top public utility officials and the president of Hawaiian Electric testified in the hearing about the role the electrical grid played in last month’s deadly Maui wildfire. Continue reading
Sep 27 Investigators use these clues to solve mystery of how small fire grew into deadly Maui inferno By Michael Biesecker, Jennifer McDermott, Bernard Condon, Associated Press Melted remains of an old car tire. Two burned trees. A stump of an abandoned utility pole. These are among the pieces of evidence investigators are examining as they seek to solve the mystery of last month’s Maui wildfire. Continue reading
Sep 08 The number of missing persons following devastating Maui wildfires has dropped to 66, governor says By Audrey McAvoy, Associated Press The tally of the missing is now significantly lower than a week earlier, when authorities said 385 remained unaccounted for. Continue reading
Sep 07 Watch 9:14 Amid grief and loss, Maui residents and businesses continue wildfire recovery By Amna Nawaz, Shoshana Dubnow Friday marks a month since the wildfires in Maui raged out of control, claiming too many victims and destroying a historic part of the island. Now, amid so much grief and loss, residents and businesses are trying to recover and… Continue watching
Aug 30 WATCH: Biden delivers remarks on federal response to Maui wildfires, Hurricane Idalia By Associated Press President Joe Biden says Hurricane Idalia is “still very dangerous” even though it has weakened after coming ashore in Florida on Wednesday morning. Continue reading