Reports from Maui indicate that that the death toll from a wildfire that has turned the resort town of Lahaina on Hawaii’s Maui island into smoldering ruins was expected to rise “very significantly” on Thursday, according to Hawaii Governor Josh Green. “We will need to rebuild the entirety of Lahaina, I believe,” Governor Green told KHON 2 TV.
Official reports indicate that 36 people have died after the fires broke out late on Tuesday, and more have suffered burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries. Search and rescue efforts continue, and thousands of people have fled the area, into emergency shelters and off the island.
The governor indicated that the death count will climb into the 40s later on Thursday.
The fires were the worst disaster to befall Hawaii since 1960, one year after it became a U.S. state, when a tsunami killed 61 people.