MADRID, 11 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The death toll from forest fires in the US archipelago of Hawaii has risen to 53, according to Maui County authorities on the island of the same name.
“While the efforts of the Fire Department continue, 17 new deaths have been confirmed today from the active Lahaina fire. This brings the death toll to 53 people,” said a statement released through the local government website.
Minutes before, the governor of Hawaii, Josh Green, had warned that the number of fatalities from forest fires could exceed the worst disaster in the archipelago, the 1960 tsunami, which killed 61 people, according to CNN.
“I’ll tell you that by the time this whole disaster is described, I’m sure there will be dozens of people who have lost their lives and billions of dollars of property that has been destroyed,” Green said.
According to local authorities, more than 14,000 people have been evacuated from the island of Maui during the day on Wednesday, while another 14,500 are expected to be transferred throughout Thursday.
The president of the United States, Joe Biden, has signed the formal declaration of disaster in the state of Hawaii to collaborate in the emergency derived from the wave of forest fires that began on Tuesday, while his ‘number two’, Kamala Harris, has confirmed the mobilization at the federal level to help the authorities and inhabitants of Hawaii, and has applauded the “heroic” work of the emergency services.
