For several days, Hawaii has been affected by a wave of fires that left at least 111 dead and many forced to evacuate. According to reports, some $3.2 billion was lost in property damage, while 5,000 properties suffered damage. To determine the true cause of the fire, the state’s federal prosecutor announced she will appoint an independent investigator.
Anne López, the attorney general of Hawaii, gave the news on Thursday afternoon, through a statement in which she notified that the process will be carried out by an “external private organization with experience in emergency management and processes.”
“This will be an impartial, independent review. Having a third-party conduct the review will ensure accountability and transparency and reassure the people of Hawaii that all of the facts will be uncovered. The information collected will be used to assess the performance in emergency preparedness as we are constantly looking for ways to improve,” the statement continued.
Attorney General review of State and County response to Maui wildfireshttps://t.co/LLC8UxJ14b
— Hawaii AG Anne E. Lopez (@AtghIgov) August 17, 2023
According to her office, the investigator will take whatever time is necessary to discover the true cause of the fires that have terrorized the state for over a week. The flames completely destroyed the resort town of Lahated in western Maui.
“Nearly 500 people impacted from the fires have already transitioned into hotels, and we’re committed to working with our hotel and vacation rental industries to prioritize the temporary housing needs of our people. We “mahalo” them for their extraordinary efforts,” said the governor, John Green.
Recently a group of affected residents filed a lawsuit against Hawaii's electric utility, claiming its response was poor and that aging infrastructure aided the fire in becoming a large-scale disaster.
President Joe Biden was criticized for not personally going to the island. According to Kamala Harris, neither she nor her boss have visited yet so as not to divert attention from the rescue operations. After a few days of many negative comments on social networks, Biden announced that he will travel to Hawaii on August 21.
