Wildfires on Hawaii’s island of Maui have killed at least 55 people and destroyed a historic town, officials said.
The number of deaths is expected to rise even higher. Officials said it will take years to rebuild Lahaina, the one-time capital of the former kingdom of Hawaii.
Governor Josh Green said the fire was the worst natural disaster in the state's history, making thousands of people homeless and burning as many as 1,000 buildings. In 1960, a tsunami killed 61 people in the state.
"It's going to take many years to rebuild Lahaina," Green said at a Thursday news conference.
Lahaina was once the home of King Kamehameha, who united Hawaii under a single kingdom. Kings and queens are buried on the grounds of the 200-year-old stone Waiola Church, one of burned sites.
Lahaina draws 2 million visitors each year, or about 80 percent of the island's visitors.
Fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, at least three wildfires burned on Maui this week.
Maui Fire Department Chief Brad Ventura said one fire moved so fast that it was impossible to warn people of the emergency. “What we experienced was such a fast-moving fire ... they were basically self-evacuating with fairly little notice,” Ventura told the Associated Press.
Thousands of visitors and locals were evacuated from the western side of Maui, which has a year-round population of about 166,000. Locals sheltered on the island or the neighboring island of Oahu. And visitors gathered in Kahului Airport, waiting for flights back home.
Some people fled the immediate danger by jumping into the Pacific Ocean.
Among them was Vixay Phonxaylinkham, a visitor from Fresno, California. He said his family was trapped in a car as the fires neared, forcing the family to jump in the water. They held onto pieces of wood to stay above water.
"We floated around for four hours," the man told Reuters from an emergency shelter. "It was a vacation that turned into a nightmare. I heard explosions everywhere, I heard screaming, and some people didn’t make it. I feel so sad," he said.
Many survivors suffered burns and other injuries.
"It was so hot all around me, I felt like my shirt was about to catch fire," said Nicoangelo Knickerbocker, a 21-year-old from Lahaina. Knickerbocker heard cars and a gas station explode. He fled from the town with his father and the family dog. "It sounded like a war was going on," he said.
Officials said Thursday that they have contained about 80 percent of the Lahaina fire. There was no immediate estimate for others. However, experts say the fires are likely to change Hawaii in unwanted ways. They include a threat to coral reefs, drinking water, and its soil.
Wildfires, often caused by record-setting heat, have become more common around the world this summer. They forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people in Greece, Spain, Portugal and other parts of Europe. In western Canada, several unusually severe fires sent clouds of smoke over a large part of the United States, polluting the air.
I'm Dan Friedell.
