Maui fires update today: Hawaii officials begin identifying 101 dead as fears of chemical fallout grow

President Joe Biden said he is working with the government to find a time to visit Hawaii after the devastating wildfires – following blowback over his previous comments about the disaster.

“My wife Jill and I are going to travel to Hawaii as soon as we can,” Biden said Tuesday in Milwaukee at a White House event held to highlight his economic agenda.

“I don’t want to get in the way,” the president said, adding that recovery work being carried about by emergency responders and search and rescue teams is “painstaking work” that “takes time.”

The fires in Maui, Hawaii haven’t been contained yet, but already residents of Lahaina are worried investors will try to capitalise on the disaster for land development.

The wildfires that ravaged Maui last week left a scar on towns like Lahaina, where 80 per cent of the structures in town have been damaged or destroyed.

Hawaii governor Josh Green estimated that the state has lost an estimated $5.6 billion and it could cost that just to rebuild Maui.

But while thousands of people living on the islands are trying to recover and find shelter, investors see an opportunity.

The Biden administration doubled down in their defence of President Joe Biden regarding his response to the Hawaii wildfires.

While aboard Air Force One on Tuesday, deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton began a press gaggle by giving remarks about Mr Biden’s efforts to send aid and assist those in Hawaii affected by the wildfires.

Ms Dalton listed all the federal resources the Biden administration has given to Hawaii including more than 500 federal personnel which includes FEMA personnel to assist in search and recovery efforts.

“I would also just like to add because I know many of you have asked that we’re currently having active conversations about when a visit to Hawaii might be possible,” Ms Dalton said.

Oprah Winfrey was thanked by a Maui shelter for those affected by wildfires after instructing a news camera crew to wait outside while she visited.

The entertainment mogul and former talk show host, 69, has been providing aid for those in need after wildfires severely impacted areas in Hawaii last week.

“I’m really pleased to have so many people supporting… bringing what they can and doing what they can,” she explained on Thursday (10 August), after admitting that it was an “overwhelming” time.

“I came earlier just to see what people needed then went shopping because often, you know, you make donations of clothes or whatever and it’s not really what people need.

“So I actually went to Walmart and Costco and got pillows, shampoo, diapers, sheets, pillowcases.”

Former US president Barack Obama has posted an emotional video to social media in response to the devastating Hawaii wildfires, which have already claimed at least 99 lives.

“Aloha everybody. Like so many people around the world, Michelle and I have been absolutely heartbroken by the devastating images coming out of Maui and Lahaina over the last week,” the Democrat said.

“As someone who grew up in Hawaii, as someone who has taken my family to enjoy the incredible beauty of that island and the hospitality of the people of Lahaina, we now find ourselves mourning the lives that are lost and our thoughts and prayers go out to the families that have lost so much.

He continued: “The thing about it is though, thoughts and prayers in a moment like this are not enough. We have to step up. We have to help those families and we have to help Lahaina rebuild.

“And the good news is that the Hawaii Red Cross and Malama Maui are mobilising to provide direct support to people who are desperately in need.”

Awakened by howling winds that tore through his Maui neighborhood, Shane Treu went out at dawn and saw a wooden power pole suddenly snap with a flash, its sparking, popping line falling to the dry grass below and quickly igniting a row of flames.

He called 911 and then turned on Facebook video to livestream his attempt to fight the blaze in Lahaina, including wetting down his property with a garden hose.

“I heard ‘buzz, buzz,’” the 49-year-old resort worker recounted to The Associated Press. “It was almost like somebody lit a firework. It just ran straight up the hill to a bigger pile of grass and then, with that high wind, that fire was blazing.”

Treu’s video and others captured the early moments of what would become the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. Now the footage has emerged as key evidence pointing to fallen utility lines as the possible cause. Hawaiian Electric Co. faces criticism for not shutting off the power amid high wind warnings and keeping it on even as dozens of poles began to topple.

A class-action lawsuit has already been filed seeking to hold the company responsible for the deaths of at least 99 people. The suit cites the utility’s own documents showing it was aware that preemptive power shutoffs such as those used in California were an effective strategy to prevent wildfires but never adopted them.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

A total of 21 flights from the Kahului Airport to Maui, Hawaii has carried more than 4,200 to safety, American Airlines said in an update on Monday.

Airlines like American Airlines have been doing their part to help evacuate visitors from the island and provide relief in the form of necessities to residents of Maui who lost everything in the severe fires.

When Joe Biden announced the federal government’s latest aid package to families left homeless by the Maui wildfires on Monday, a seemingly innocuous turn of phrase sent conspiracists into meltdown.

“We’re laser-focused on getting aid to survivors,” the president wrote, apparently unaware of the bogus claims circulating on social media of space lasers being used to deliberately start the wildfires that swept through Maui on 8 August.

As with nearly every traumatic event, from natural disasters to school shootings, fake theories that sprung up immediately online followed a familiar narrative of climate change denial, government cover-up and in some cases antisemitic tropes.

Just one week ago the neighbourhoods of Maui were bustling and surrounded by colourful foliage. Now, ash and soot blanket nearly every surface, buildings and homes are destroyed, and nearly 100 people are dead.

Fast-moving wildfires hit unknowing residents in Maui and other parts of Hawaii last week leading to destruction and death.

While some people managed to escape the blazes before they engulfed towns, others had no choice but to flee to the ocean to prevent themselves from being burned.

As of early Monday morning, the death toll is at 99 people, with most of the remains being unidentifiable due to the scorching fires.

Now, as officials work to identify victims and try to find hundreds of other missing people, locals are wondering why emergency alerts were not sounded and what could have been done to lessen the damage.

Three companies have donated WiFi powered by Starlink to six emergency shelters around Hawaii and Maui.

Privateer Space, Alpha Inc and Mahi Pono helped fund the free wifi and donated charging vans and trucks for people to charge their phones at Napili Gateway, Honokowai Park and Napili Park in West Maui.