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Maui Wildfire Becomes Deadliest U.S. Blaze In Over A Century—Surpassing These Other Fires

08/14/2023
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Topline

The death toll from Maui’s devastating wildfires reached 93 this weekend, according to county officials, making it the deadliest American wildfire in more than a century and the fifth-deadliest on record—and the final count is expected to continue to rise.

Key Facts

The Maui fires are now the deadliest U.S. blaze since 1918’s Cloquet & Moose Lake Fires, which killed 453 people in northeastern Minnesota, according to figures from the National Fire Protection Association—a series of fires blamed on a spark from a passing train during the region’s driest season in decades.

Three other wildfires have higher death counts than the Maui fires, according to NFPA, all of which came in the late 1800s: The 1871 Peshtigo Fire killed a record 1,152 people in Wisconsin on the same night the great Chicago Fire claimed hundreds of lives, three counties were touched and 282 were killed after lightning started Michigan’s Thumb Fire in 1881, and three towns were completely destroyed in Minnesota’s Great Hinckley Fire in 1894, killing 418 people.

No cause has ever been declared for the Great Fire of 1910, which burned three million acres of timberland in northern Idaho and western Montana while claiming the lives of 87 people, most of whom were firefighters, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The Camp Fire that ravaged California and caused $16.5 billion worth of damage in 2018 killed 85 people, damaged or destroyed more than 19,000 residential and commercial buildings and burned 153,336 acres, according to the state.

The deadliest fire in 100 years before Maui’s blaze, the Camp Fire was caused by faulty electric transmission line, and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. pleaded guilty in 2020 to killing 84 of the 85 victims.

Key Background

Brush fires were first reported Tuesday in West Maui, a popular tourist destination that includes the Kaanapali and Kapalua beach resorts, and spread quickly to Lahaina. Winds from Hurricane Dora to the south pushed fires into areas impacted by drought and impeded firefighters working to contain the flames by grounding helicopters and damaging roads. Hawaii’s Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke said the state was prepared for hurricane rain but “never anticipated” widespread wildfires, and Maui County Fire Chief Bradford Ventura said emergency management officials didn’t have time to issue evacuation orders to residents because the fire spread so quickly. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency said none of the 80 outdoor warning sirens across Maui were activated amid the emergency but that other systems, including cell phone and television warnings, were used. Roughly 5,000 people were still without electricity Sunday morning as Sen. Mazie Hiono (D-Hawaii) told CNN the centuries-old town of Lahaina has been “burned to the ground.” Only two of the confirmed 93 people killed in the fires have been identified, the government said Saturday.

Big Number

Nearly $6 billion. That is how much it will cost to rebuild Lahaina and Kula, the Pacific Disaster Center and Federal Emergency Management Agency estimates. Lauren Sánchez, Jeff Bezos’ fiancee and vice chair of the Bezos Earth Fund, on Friday said she and the Amazon founder will establish a $100 million fund to “help Maui get back on its feet now and over the coming years.” A spokesperson for software tycoon David Duffield said his foundation is “working with the Maui Humane Society to ease the suffering of Maui’s companion animals.”

Further Reading

What’s Causing Hawaii’s Deadly Wildfires—Experts Point To Flammable Grasses, Drought And Hurricane Winds (Forbes)

Hawaii Wildfires: At Least 67 Dead And Some Of Island’s Oldest Landmarks Destroyed (Forbes)

Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sánchez Announce $100 Million Fund For Maui Wildfire Relief (Forbes)

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/08/13/maui-wildfire-becomes-deadliest-us-blaze-in-over-a-century-surpassing-these-other-fires/