Hawaii鈥檚 governor warned that scores more people could be found dead following ferocious wildfires on Maui, as search and rescue crews scoured neighborhoods street by street and prepared to comb through buildings charred by flames that galloped a mile a minute.
The blazes, which consumed most of the , are already the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a century, with a . Two fires have not yet been completely contained, according to an update from Maui County late Sunday.
鈥淲e are prepared for many tragic stories,鈥� Gov. Josh Green told 鈥淐BS Mornings鈥� in a recorded interview that was aired Monday. 鈥淭hey will find 10 to 20 people per day, probably, until they finish. And it鈥檚 probably going to take 10 days. It鈥檚 impossible to guess, really.鈥�
As cell phone service has slowly been restored, Green had said that the number of people missing dropped to about 1,300 from over 2,000.
Twenty cadaver dogs and dozens of people are making their way through blocks reduced to ash.
鈥淩ight now, they鈥檙e going street by street, block by block between cars, and soon they鈥檒l start to enter buildings,鈥� Jeff Hickman, the director of public affairs for the Hawaii Department of Defense, said Monday on NBC鈥檚 鈥淭oday.鈥�
Such crews had covered just 3% of the search area, Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said Saturday.
The blaze that swept into centuries-old Lahaina nearly a week ago destroyed nearly every building in the town of 13,000, leaving a grid of gray rubble wedged between the blue ocean and lush green slopes. That fire has been 85% contained, according to the county, while the Upcountry fire has been 60% contained.
鈥淭here鈥檚 very little left there,鈥� Green said about Lahaina in a video update Sunday, adding that 鈥渁n estimated value of $5.6 billion has gone away.鈥�
Even where the fire has retreated, authorities have warned that toxic byproducts may remain, including in drinking water, after the flames . And many people simply have no home to return to 鈥� so authorities plan to house them in hotels and vacation rentals.
The cause of the wildfires is under investigation, and Green said authorities would also examine their response. One fire, for instance, was thought to be out but later flared again. Before the , Maui County officials also failed to activate sirens that would have warned the entire population and instead relied on social media posts.
Fueled by a and strong winds from a , the flames on Maui raced through parched brush 鈥� one moving as fast as 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) every minute, according to Green.
鈥淲ith those kinds of winds and 1,000-degree temperatures, ultimately all the pictures that you will see will be easy to understand,鈥� he said.
The fires are Hawaii鈥檚 deadliest natural disaster in decades, surpassing a 1960 tsunami that killed 61 people. They also surpassed the in northern California that left 85 dead and destroyed the town of Paradise.
Many gathered Sunday to mourn the dead. Maria Lanakila Church in Lahaina was spared from the flames that wiped out most of the surrounding community, but with search-and-recovery efforts ongoing, its members . The Bishop of Honolulu, the Rev. Clarence 鈥淟arry鈥� Silva, presided.
Taufa Samisoni said his uncle, aunt, cousin and the cousin鈥檚 7-year-old son were found dead inside a burned car. Samisoni鈥檚 wife, Katalina, said the family would draw comfort from Silva鈥檚 reference to the Bible story of how Jesus鈥� disciple Peter walked on water and was saved from drowning.
鈥淚f Peter can walk on water, yes we can. We will get to the shore,鈥� she said, her voice quivering.
Meanwhile, Hawaii officials urged tourists to avoid traveling to Maui as many hotels prepared to house evacuees and first responders.
Green said 500 hotels rooms will be made available for locals who have been displaced. An additional 500 rooms will be set aside for workers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some hotels will carry on with normal business to help preserve jobs and sustain the local economy, Green said.
The state wants to work with Airbnb to make sure that rental homes can be made available for locals.
J.P. Mayoga, a cook at the Westin Maui in Kaanapali, is still making breakfast, lunch and dinner on a daily basis. But instead of serving hotel guests, he鈥檚 been feeding the roughly 200 hotel employees and their family members who have been living there since Tuesday.
His home and that of his father were spared. But his girlfriend, two young daughters, father and another local are all staying in a hotel room together, as it is safer than Lahaina, which is covered in toxic debris.
鈥淓verybody has their story, and everybody lost something. So everybody can be there for each other, and they understand what鈥檚 going on in each other鈥檚 lives,鈥� he said of his co-workers at the hotel.
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