Hawai'i is experiencing the worst fire on record in years. On Tuesday, the blaze began consuming the island of Maui and left at least 80 fatalities in its wake, according to the Maui County's official website, making it the second deadliest wildfire since 2018. That year, recalls Breitbart, the Camp Fire in California killed at least 85 people.
The fire is still active, and resources have already been mobilized. However, the islanders will not have a visit from President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris. It was Harris who assured Friday that none of the country's top politicians intend to go to Maui or the other affected areas to see the devastation faced by the islanders first hand. The reason? They don't want to be a distraction to the relief efforts that are needed on the ground right now, as she told several media outlets minutes before boarding Air Force Two for Chicago:
We don’t want to distract from the resources that need to go in to the victims of this tragedy, and of course, the needs of the first responders have to be able to focus on that issue and not worry about focusing on us [because] we’re there.
VP Kamala Harris says she wants to go to Hawaii after the wildfires, but she wants “to do whatever’s in the best interest of the folks on the ground. We don’t want to distract from resources that need to go into the victims ... because we’re there.” pic.twitter.com/zHnbtHAzui
— The Recount (@therecount) August 11, 2023
Biden issues federal disaster declaration in Hawaii
As the vice president stated just afterward, the Biden administration is already "coordinating federal resources to swiftly get there to support the work in terms of recovery but to just support the folks on the ground." She also assured that the fire, which destroyed at least 2,000 acres of land as well as 80% of the town of Lahaina, "is tragic."
The fire has not only the islanders, but the whole country concerned. The consequences are worsening, and the number of deaths continues to rise as the rubble is cleared. For that reason, the president issued a federal disaster declaration in the area on Thursday. The order opens up federal assistance for the areas most damaged by the fire and includes the urgent shipment of water and food to help 5,000 people over the next five days.
Along with this, Biden explained during a press conference in Salt Lake City that the federal government is also sending reinforcements with the intention of evacuating islanders in the affected area as soon as possible:
We’re working as quickly as possible to fight those fires and evacuate residents and tourists. In the meantime, our prayers are with the people of Hawai'i, but not just our prayers: every asset that we have will be available to them.
Among the pledged assistance, the White House explains in a press release, there is assistance for requesting grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster. In addition, it also includes funds that may be used for debris removal and emergency protective measures in Maui County.
