(08-09-2023 09:05 PM)shere khan Wrote:  In before muh climate change

(08-09-2023 09:03 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  For a number of years I attended a year-end academic conference held in alternate years at Disney World in Orlando and a beachfront hotel just north of Lahaina. The years on Maui coincided with the PGA Tour Tournament of Champions, and many of the caddies (but no players, as far as I know) stayed in the same hotel. Some very interesting conversations in the evenings.

So sad to see this happen to a beautiful and fascinating place.

(08-09-2023 10:18 PM)UCGrad1992 Wrote:  

(08-09-2023 09:03 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  For a number of years I attended a year-end academic conference held in alternate years at Disney World in Orlando and a beachfront hotel just north of Lahaina. The years on Maui coincided with the PGA Tour Tournament of Champions, and many of the caddies (but no players, as far as I know) stayed in the same hotel. Some very interesting conversations in the evenings.
So sad to see this happen to a beautiful and fascinating place.

When I visited there, Maui was known as the "party island." Our tour bus driver was Larry from Portugal and we named him Lahaina Larry. He said many times to "suck 'em up" for Mai Tai cocktails that were available en masse. Boy, did we!

Quote:As a wildfire that has killed at least 55 and left thousands without shelter continues to wreak havoc on Maui, a story from 2022 has resurfaced of a group arrested on the Hawaiian island after setting a series of suspicious brush fires.

In May of 2022, John Hlis, Krystale Kaneakua, and Steven Sarol were apprehended in connection with a series of suspicious brushfires were reported.

A total of six brush fires were reported within a 90-minute window, burning around 5 acres of Central Maui.

Hlis was charged with second-degree arson for one fire in Puunene and fourth-degree arson for another started in Wailuku, according to Maui News. Hlis was also hit with a slew of gun charges.

Kaneakua was charged with second-degree arson in connection to the Puunene fire.

Police said that Hlis and Kaneakua were seen buying a gas can, lighter fluid, Lysol, and charcoal at a local store just before the fires started.

Sarol, described as Kaneakua’s boyfriend, was not charged with arson. He was instead arrested for violating bail conditions and contempt of court.

The re-emergence of the story comes as wildfires continue to burn across the island, with at least 55 being reported dead and the death toll expected to rise.

The exact cause of the current fire is currently unknown, but much of Hawaii has been under a red flag warning for fire risk.

"We don't know what actually ignited the fires, but we were made aware in advance by the National Weather Service that we were in a red flag situation — so that's dry conditions for a long time, so the fuel, the trees and everything, was dry," Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, commander general of the Hawaii Army National Guard, said at a briefing Wednesday, according to CBS News.

The conditions, along with low humidity and high winds, "set the conditions for the wildfires," he said.

Quote:In the last five years, the Hawaiian emergency alarm system mistakenly went off two different times, causing panic among residents. This week, the system fell short yet again but in a profound way — there was never a warning to the community about the latest wildfires set ablaze on the island of Maui.

Most survivors had little warning of the gaining fire until they smelled smoke or saw flames, reported The Associated Press. Dustin Kaleiopu, a resident of the city of Lahaina that’s in ruins, left his home with his grandfather when smoke started coming through the window, reported CBS News.

“By the time we got in our car, our neighbor’s yard was on fire,” Kaleiopu said. “There were strangers in our yard with their water hoses trying to put fires out.”

Hawaii has prided itself in the past on what it’s called the largest integrated outdoor all-hazard public safety warning system in the world, equipped with 400 sirens across the island.

But the Hawaii emergency management team has no record of the sirens sounding to warn residents of the fires on Tuesday, per AP. Instead, Adam Weintraub — who is a Hawaii Emergency Management spokesman — said alerts were sent out through cellphones, televisions and radio stations, which weren’t reliable considering the power and cell tower outages at the time.

The stage was set for a mess of confusion and lack of communication from emergency services.

(08-11-2023 03:31 PM)ericsrevenge76 Wrote:  Maui is truly one of the most beautiful places on earth. What a terrible disaster for those people.