At least 55 people have died in the wildfires that swept through Maui, Hawaii, prompting residents to question the state’s emergency warning systems. Despite Hawaii’s robust network of about 400 sirens intended to alert residents to various threats, many survivors in Lahaina claim they didn’t hear any sirens and only realized the danger when they saw flames or heard nearby explosions.
For Thomas Leonard, a 70-year-old retired mailman from Lahaina, the smell of smoke was his first indication of the fire. Earlier that day, power and cellphone service had gone out, leaving residents without real-time updates.
Although the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency sent out alerts to mobile phones, televisions, and radio stations, it’s unclear whether these alerts were dispatched before widespread power and cellular outages disrupted most communication to Lahaina.
The wildfires, fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, surprised Maui, rapidly consuming parched brush covering the island before destroying homes and structures in its path.
Bobby Lee, the president of the Hawaii Firefighters Association, said Maui’s firefighting efforts might have been hindered by a small staff. There are a maximum of 65 firefighters working at any given time across three islands — Maui, Molokai, and Lanai. The lack of off-road vehicles was also a challenge, as fire crews couldn’t effectively combat brush fires before they reached roads or populated areas.
This catastrophic event underlines the critical importance of effective emergency warning systems and rapid response capabilities to minimize casualties during natural disasters.