https://nypost.com/2023/08/12/lahaina-maui-faced-near-riot-in-cops-clash-
after-fires/

The catastrophic Maui wildfires have become the deadliest natural disaster
in Hawaii�s history, with the death toll climbing to 80 late Friday � as
cadaver dogs sniffed through smoldering piles of rubble Saturday in search
of more dead bodies.

The grim tally of the disaster � which started as a brush fire Tuesday
night and rapidly spread � is likely to rise significantly as search and
rescue operations continue, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green warned.

To aid in the frantic efforts, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen Jr.
announced that dogs trained to find bodies were brought in later Friday to
scour the destruction.

A sobering assessment released Saturday by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency and Pacific Disaster Center revealed that a total of
2,207 buildings and other structures have been damaged or destroyed as of
Friday, while 2,170 acres have been burned.

It will cost an eye-watering $5.52 billion to rebuild, the agencies
estimated.

�Nobody has entered any of these structures that have burned down and
that�s where we unfortunately anticipate that the death toll will rise
significantly,� US Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii also told MSNBC
Saturday.

The raging infernos have already now become the deadliest natural disaster
in Hawaii�s history, surpassing that of a tsunami that killed 61 people on
the Big Island of Hawaii in 1960, a year after Hawaii joined the United
States.

The intense blazes have turned the beach paradise into a �war zone,� Mayor
Bissen solemnly declared on ABC�s �Good Morning America� Friday.

�The closest thing I can compare it to is perhaps a war zone where maybe a
bomb went off,� he said.

Haunting photos show smoldering rubble, burning homes, leafless skeletons
of charred trees, and the scorched carcasses of cars.

In the hard-hit town of Lahaina, resident Annelise Cochran told the
Washington Post Saturday that �it was the closest I�ve felt to death.�

Cochran and her neighbor survived the deadly fire that ripped through
Lahaina � the largest tourist destination on Maui � by spending more than
five hours in the water clinging to a rock wall.

The fires have all but wiped out the historic town of 13,000 people.

Roughly 100 desperate Lahaina residents clashed with police Friday after
authorities reopened � then quickly closed � the main road back to the
town for the first time since the wildfires tore through the region.
Officers described the confrontation as a �near-riot.�

Footage on social media showed long lines of cars heading into the fire-
ravaged Lahaina after the road was opened at noon for the first time since
Tuesday.

Police were screening motorists to ensure only Lahaina residents with
identification, or visitors who could prove they were hotel guests in West
Maui, could be let in.

But by 5 p.m., authorities shut down the road in both directions, leaving
motorists furious. Some drivers parked on the highway and defiantly barged
into areas locked down due to hazardous conditions.

�Those caught within this zone will be escorted out and may be arrested,�
Maui County officials said in a statement.

The Maui Police Department did not immediately respond to messages from
The Post, including whether there were any arrests or injuries.

Actor Jason Momoa � who was born in Honolulu � issued a stern warning to
fans this week, urging them not to travel to Maui.

�Maui is not the place to have your vacation right now,� the �Aquaman�
star wrote on Instagram, alongside a video montage of the devastation.

�DO NOT TRAVEL TO MAUI.�

Meanwhile, the state�s emergency response is facing scrutiny after
officials confirmed Friday that warning sirens throughout Maui failed to
activate as the wildfires ripped through the island and people had to run
for their lives.

Alerts were then sent to mobile phones, television, and radio stations,
however, widespread power and cellular outages limited their reach.

Gov. Green said it wasn�t clear why the sirens weren�t activated, but that
the fire destroyed much of the equipment.

One Maui resident, who lives about 10 miles north of Lahaina, told CNN he
�didn�t even know there was a fire� until a friend alerted him Thursday.

Attorney General Anne Lopez announced plans to conduct a comprehensive
review of decision-making and policies affecting the bungled response.

With Post wires

--
We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that
stupid people won't be offended.

Durham Report: The FBI has an integrity problem. It has none.

No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.
Officially made Nancy Pelosi a two-time impeachment loser.

Thank you for cleaning up the disaster of the 2008-2017 Obama / Biden
fiasco, President Trump.

Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.

President Trump boosted the economy, reduced illegal invasions, appointed
dozens of judges and three SCOTUS justices.