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Post by schwartzie on Aug 16, 2023 22:33:15 GMT -5
WSJ: Hawaiian Electric Focused on Climate Change, Neglected Wildfire Risk
JOEL B. POLLAK 16 Aug 2023 The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Hawaiian Electric, the biggest power supplier in the state, focused on shifting to renewable energy sources to combat climate change, rather than spending money to address fire risk around its power lines. Earlier that day, John Podesta, a left-wing stalwart who advises President Joe Biden on clean energy, took to the White House podium to blame climate change for the wildfire in Maui, which destroyed Lahaina and has likely killed hundreds of people. “To stop these disasters from getting even worse, we have to cut the carbon pollution that is driving the climate crisis, and that’s what the Inflation Reduction Act is all about,” Podesta said, using the disaster to promote Biden’s law on its first anniversary. John Podesta, senior advisor to the President for clean energy innovation, speaks during a news conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. President Biden has been building up to the one-year mark of his Inflation Reduction Act, a massive package that included billions of dollars for climate and sweeping tax and health-care measures, with events around the country, culminating in a celebration at the White House today. Photographer: Sarah Silbiger/Bloomberg via Getty Images But a cause of the fire is still unknown, and the San Francisco Chronicle has reported that the fire was fueled by alien, invasive grass species that have come to dominate the local landscape, and which burned quickly in winds fed by an offshore hurricane. KAANAPALI, HAWAII – AUGUST 08: Wildfires burn over the town of Lahaina as seen in the neighboring Kaanapali Alii resort, on August 08, 2023 in Kaanapali, Maui, Hawaii (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images) The Journal reported that suspicion is rapidly focusing on Hawaiian Electric’s power lines, which are suspended from telephone poles, many of which were downed in the wind, and some of which were seen sparking in the hours before the wildfire spread. Moreover, the Journal noted that Hawaiian Electric had taken note of similar risks in California’s recent wildfires, but had yet to devote significant resources to addressing the problem. Instead, it focused on complying with state “green” energy mandates: Since [California power company Pacific Gas and Electric]’s bankruptcy, Hawaiian Electric has made reference in regulatory filings to the risks of power-line fires, but it waited years to take significant action, documents and interviews show. During that period, the company was undertaking a state-mandated shift to renewable energy. In filings over the next two years with the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, which is tasked with approving utility projects and spending, the company made only passing reference to wildfire mitigation. Former regulators and energy company officials said the utility was focused at that time on procuring renewable energy. Hawaii has been on a push to convert to renewables since 2008, when a run-up in oil prices sent electrical rates at Hawaiian Electric—which relied on petroleum imports for 80% of its energy supply—through the roof. In 2015, lawmakers passed legislation mandating that the state derive 100% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2045, the first such requirement in the U.S. The company had plans to spend nearly $200 million on wildfire mitigation measures on Maui, the Journal reported, but instead had spent less than $245,000. The wildfire plan was stalled by bureaucracy; in the interim, the company focused on climate goals. link
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Post by schwartzie on Aug 16, 2023 22:44:35 GMT -5
Why Is There Such A Frenzy To Buy Up The Properties That Were Just Burned Down During The Fires In Hawaii?
WEDNESDAY, AUG 16, 2023 - 08:45 AM Authored by Michael Snyder via TheMostImportantNews.com, Can you imagine calling up a family that has just seen their home burn to the ground and offering to buy their land for below market value? This is apparently happening in Hawaii right now on a massive scale. Grieving property owners are being bombarded with calls from very greedy people, and I think that says a lot about the current state of our society. We literally worship material possessions and financial gain, and the sheer greed that we are witnessing at this moment is absolutely staggering. Lahaina was hit harder than anywhere else by the fires, and it turns out that property owners in the area have been getting pressured to sell for a long time. So now that disaster has struck, those that wish to get their hands on these prime properties are in a feeding frenzy. One local resident made headlines all over the world after she posted a video about this… Filming herself in the recent video, the Hawaii resident said: ‘I am so frustrated with investors and realtors calling the families who lost their home, offering to buy their land. ‘How dare you do that to our community right now. If you are a victim and they are calling you, please get their business name so we can put them on blast,’ she added. She claims in the clip that she ‘personally’ knows ‘multiple families’ that were ‘offered money from investors and realtors’. When 2020 began, the average home in Lahaina was worth about $600,000. Today, the average home in Lahaina is worth about a million dollars. Now there is a race to take advantage of those that have just had their homes burned down, and it has gotten so bad that even Hawaiian Governor Josh Green is speaking out against it… Hawaiian officials are warning residents that unscrupulous investors are trying to take advantage of the fire disaster on Maui to take over properties. Gov. Josh Green reported that residents are being approached about selling fire-damaged home or land sites by people posing as real estate agents. He said those people may have “ill intent” and issued a warning to scammers. “You would be pretty poorly informed if you try to steal land from our people and then build here,” Green said in a press release Monday. A lot of people applauded Green for taking a stand like that. But does he have another motive? Green has been captured on video saying that he is “already thinking of ways for the state to acquire that land”… The Hawaiian governor Josh Green revealed plans for the state to potentially purchase properties in the seaside town of Lahaina, which was devastated by the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history. “I’m already thinking of ways for the state to acquire that land so that we can put it into workforce housing, to put it back into families, or make it open spaces in perpetuity as a memorial to the people who were lost,” Green commented amid the ruins. Wow. There it is. Apparently Green has his own plans for these properties. We will just have to wait and see what those plans are. Meanwhile, it is being reported that the police chief on Maui just happens to be the exact same guy that was “the incident commander” during the horrific mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017… Maui Police Chief John Pelletier is no stranger to responding to mass tragedy. Nearly six years before disaster struck in the form of wildfires that ripped through parts of the island and killed at least 99 people, he was on the ground in the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Pelletier was named chief of the the Maui Police Department in 2021 after more than two decades working in Las Vegas. On Oct. 1, 2017, Pelletier was the incident commander covering the Strip when a gunman unleashed a hail of bullets on a country music festival, killing 58 people and injuring hundreds more. That is one heck of a coincidence. And it is also being reported that Pelletier “earned a certificate in criminal justice from the FBI academy in 2019”. So he has ties to the feds. Just when you think that this story cannot possibly get any stranger, somehow it does. After being greatly criticized for lounging on a beach while the tragedy in Hawaii was unfolding, we are being told that Joe Biden is now “considering” a trip to see the devastation. Amid growing evidence of the devastation wildfires have wrought in Maui, the White House Tuesday gave the first public indication that President Biden will visit Hawaii. White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Dalton confirmed that officials were considering an in-person trip, after Biden took heat for his terse ‘no comment’ on Hawaii even while the scope of the tragedy was coming into view. The president was staying at his Delaware beach house at the time. Come on man. I know that Biden doesn’t like to make trips like this, but this is what the American people expect. It is part of the job. The Biden administration also angered a lot of people when it was announced that households that have been affected by the fires would only be getting a one time emergency aid payment of $700… President Joe Biden is facing renewed criticism for his response to the devastating wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui after offering victims $700 per household in emergency aid. Political opponents and commentators described the sum as “insulting” and compared it with the more than $113 billion-worth of aid the U.S. has sent to Ukraine as it defends itself against an ongoing Russian invasion. Seriously? After all that we have done for Ukraine, that is the best that we can do for people that have lost everything? Of course somehow there is always more than enough money for Ukraine. In fact, we are about to send them a gigantic military aid package for the 44th time since the war began… For the 44th time, the ruling class of the United States has decided to continue to prolong the war and send military equipment to Ukraine. The Pentagon has announced a $200 million weapons package for Kiev. This newest round of equipment will include artillery rounds, dozens of tactical vehicles, and mine-clearing gear. We are at such a critical turning point, and we desperately need solid leadership in the White House. But instead we have Joe Biden and his minions. Biden is literally the worst president in the entire history of the United States, and that is saying a lot because we have had some real whoppers in modern times. Now that there has been so much public pressure, I think that Biden will feel compelled to go visit Lahaina. Unfortunately, Biden will need to make many more trips like this, because a lot more major disasters are on the way. * * * link
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Post by maybetoday on Aug 17, 2023 3:56:33 GMT -5
On the Ground in Maui: A Reporter’s First-Hand Experience of the Disaster and the Unanswered Questions
KRISTINA WONG 16 Aug 2023 West Maui, HAWAII — I arrived in Maui last Monday, August 7, ready for a week of snorkeling, surfing lessons, and relaxation. The first sign of trouble was our plane hitting rough turbulence as we were descending. Kids screamed — some in fear and some in delight — as the plane swerved up and down. The pilot joked over the loudspeaker that that it was a good thing we had seatbelts. I had read that Hurricane Dora would be passing by the island that week and that winds were expected to be high and could drive waves up to 15 feet high. I had made a mental note to be careful while in the ocean, but I never thought the threat would come from land. Nothing seemed amiss at our hotel at Kaanapali, just about three miles north of Lahaina. Another sign of trouble came from a friend from high-school who happened to be on Maui. We chatted via social media how bad the winds were. He said he and his wife had been scheduled to fly out of Maui two days ago, but their flight was canceled twice. Jet-lagged, I went to sleep around 9:30 p.m. local time. I woke up sometime in the middle of night to use the bathroom. I remember picking up my phone and thinking it was way too early to have woken up. I think it was sometime before 3 a.m. I tried to turn on lights as I made my way to the bathroom in pitch black, but nothing would turn on. I thought perhaps the lights required the insertion of a key card somewhere in the room. However, when I glanced at my phone again and saw that it had not charged, I realized that the power had gone out and assumed that the winds had knocked out the power lines, and so I went back to sleep. I woke up later around 5:30 a.m. and headed for the hotel gym. On the way I stopped at the hotel Starbucks. They had also lost power and were only serving cold drinks and pre-made food. There was power at the gym, but it went out a few minutes after I arrived. My husband and I walked down to a nearby mall called Whaler’s Village to look for breakfast. Everything was closed, except for a boba tea cafe that had their grand opening that day. Dozens lined up because it was the only place open. Back at our hotel, there was one small store open, which had basic toiletries, souvenirs, and snacks. We grabbed a few things for breakfast. We were told power would be restored by midnight. Like other hotel guests, we spent most of Tuesday sitting around the now-closed pools or at the beach. Sometime during the day, we were told there were four wildfires, most likely caused by downed power lines from the wind. Later, we walked to a beach farther down from our hotel, where some people we able to get cell phone service. I tried texting my parents in case they were worried, but was unable to send anything out. I then received a text message from my friend Eric asking if we were okay. Since he lived on the East Coast, I assumed the fires had made national news. I let him know we were fine and asked if he could let my parents know we were okay. I tried posting on social media to let everyone else know I was okay, but internet service was still non-existent. Back at the hotel, food and water was becoming scarce. Hundreds of guests waited in line for over an hour for lunch and dinner, which were being prepared at makeshift outdoor grilling stations. Some guests, unaware of meal service times, missed the meals entirely or did not get in line before the food ran out. The sun went down as I waited in line for dinner. It was then that I saw the giant wall of flames towering over Lahaina, shockingly close to us. Full story with pictures at link
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Post by maybetoday on Aug 17, 2023 4:02:58 GMT -5
Forensic expert who helped return 9/11 victims' remains to families heads to Maui to identify at least 110 killed by firestorm - and says process could take YEARS because bodies were incinerated
A man who gained fame for helping to identify remains of 9/11 victims and those murdered by serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer will head to Maui to help ID remains from last week's deadly wildfires. Dr. Robert Mann runs the Forensic Science Academy at the Central Identification Laboratory in Oahu, Hawaii, and is set to head to Maui on Thursday to help in identification efforts. Mann's arrival comes as the death toll rises to 110, but the process of identifying the remains proves agonizingly slow - and Mann warned it could take years. John Pelletier, the Maui police chief, said on Tuesday that only around a third of the devastated area of Lahaina had been searched, and the governor of Hawaii, Josh Green, has said he expects an additional eight to ten bodies to be found every day for at least the next week. Cadaver dogs flown in from California and Washington are assisting the search, and relatives of the 1,300 missing have been asked to provide DNA samples. Mann told KHON 2 that he hoped to bring closure to the families. He said relatives needed to brace themselves for the long haul. 'Typically what we would say, and what I've seen over the last 30 to 40 years or so: it could be days if you're lucky, it could be weeks, it could be months or it could even be a few years. 'They still are finding and identifying victims from the Twin Towers.' He said burnt bodies were particularly difficult to identify. 'With burning and destruction you lose pieces of the puzzle but you're still left with the hope,' he said, telling families not to lose faith in the process. Full story with pictures at link
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Post by maybetoday on Aug 17, 2023 4:07:36 GMT -5
Defiant Maui emergency leader, who has no experience in crisis management, says activating the island's emergency sirens would have saved NO ONE - as fears grow majority of dead were children left home alone with schools closed
Emergency Management chief Herman Andaya defended his decision not to set off warning sirens as the deadly wildfire barreled toward Lahaina Andaya said Wednesday Hawaiians are trained to seek higher ground when they hear those sirens, which are usually used for tsunami warnings In the wake of the fire that killed at least 110 people, some are questioning Andaya's fitness for his position By SOPHIE MANN FOR DAILYMAIL.COM PUBLISHED: 02:01 EDT, 17 August 2023 | UPDATED: 02:21 EDT, 17 August 2023 The man in charge of Maui's Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday he does not regret not activating warning sirens as the fatal wildfire swept across the island. Chief Herman Andaya said he opted to send out alerts via mobile devices, radio waves, television and the county's opt-in resident alert system - but not via siren. Despite the claim the warning sirens could have saved hundreds of people who instead burned in the deadly fire, Andaya argued the sirens are generally used for tsunami warnings and Hawaiians are trained to seek higher ground when they go off, which in this case would have led them toward the blazing inferno. There is growing fear that many children are among the dead - as they were left home alone when schools delayed opening due to power outages before the storm. Andaya defended his experience and qualification for office during a mid-week press conference held by Governor Josh Green. 'Had we sounded the siren that night, we're afraid that people would have gotten mauka [toward the mountains] and if that was the case, then they would have gone into the fire,' he said. 'I should also note that there are no sirens mauka, or on the mountainside, where the fire was spreading down. So even if we sounded the siren, we would not have saved those people out there on the mountainside.' The response came after a reporter said that several survivors of the fire - which claimed the lives of at least 110 people - said their neighbors and loves ones may have been saved if the sirens had gone off before they noticed the 1,000-degree flames rolling toward their houses. The reporter also seemed to question Andaya's resume, and how he's had no prior experience in emergency management before taking on his current role in 2017. He was chief-of-staff to a former mayor. The member of the press then asked if he would consider handing further responsibility off to someone else. Andaya said the claim he didn't have experience before assuming his current position is 'not true.' He argued his employment history includes time in the housing department, and as a staffer in the mayor's cabinet, during which time he 'reported to the emergency operation centers.' 'To say that I am not qualified, I think is incorrect,' he added. Both Governor Green and Maui Mayor Richard Bissen defended Andaya against the journalist's quasi-accusations. Green agreed his reaction to hearing the sirens would be to expect a tsunami. Green confirmed Wednesday the death toll had risen to 110, though search teams have canvassed just 38 percent of the impacted territory. Officials, including Green, have said the death toll will likely continue to climb in the next few weeks. There is increasing concern that numerous children, who were at home because schools were closed and parents were at work, are among the dead. 'Our parents work one, two, three jobs just to get by and they can't afford to take a day off,' Jessica Sill, a kindergarten teacher at Lahaina's King Kamehameha III Elementary School, told the Wall Street Journal. 'Without school, there was nowhere for [kids] to go that day.' On Wednesday, Herman Andaya defended his decision not to set off emergency warning sirens as the wildfire bounded toward Lahaina +10 View gallery On Wednesday, Herman Andaya defended his decision not to set off emergency warning sirens as the wildfire bounded toward Lahaina Andaya also claimed that even if the sirens had sounded, there would have been significant swaths of land where there are no sirens and people would therefore not have been hypothetically saved by them Cadaver dogs flown in from California and Washington are assisting the search, and relatives of the 1,300 still missing people have been asked to provide DNA samples. Authorities have established a task force to hasten the process of ID'ing bodies and notifying families about the deaths of their loved ones, as teams continue to search through the rubble. The Maui County Police Chief, John Pelletier, said: 'This is unprecedented. No one has ever seen this that is alive today. Not this size, not this number, not this volume, and we're not done.' The cause of the devastating wildfires, the deadliest in modern US history, remains under investigation. Full story with pictures at link
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Post by shalom on Aug 17, 2023 18:41:25 GMT -5
FLASHBACK: Hawaii Official Who Allegedly Withheld Water From Firefighters Says ‘Equity’ Comes First
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Post by shalom on Aug 17, 2023 18:48:28 GMT -5
This lady is very good at investigating, and she brings out some interesting facts. For example, the schools on Maui were closed that day supposedly due to a power outage, yet businesses where their parents worked and homes had power before the fires began. Listen for yourself to hear her conjectures. I heard elsewhere that bodies will not be counted in the number of dead from the fire unless the entire body of someone is recovered. My gosh, not only have bodies been incinerated (imagine how hot the fires were to have melted metal cars!), but by the time the searchers and cadaver dogs get to those in homes, they'll be totally decomposed and eaten by insects. The entire situation stinks to high heaven! MAUI FIRE OFFICIAL CAUSE REVEALED [you won't believe it] ALL THE MISSING CHILDREN....
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Post by schwartzie on Aug 17, 2023 20:01:12 GMT -5
Reports: Maui Emergency Management Agency Chief Has No Background in Disaster Response
KRISTINA WONG 17 Aug 2023254 Herman Andaya, chief of the Maui Emergency Management Agency, is coming under increasing scrutiny for his handling of the response to the Maui wildfires last week. According to CBS News, Andaya has no background in disaster response. “It’s his department that is responsible for setting off warning sirens, which rang silent during the fires,” CBS News anchor Norah O’Donnell posted to X. “Local news site Maui Now reported in 2017 that he was hired over 40 other qualified applicants,” according to the network. Asked during a press conference on Wednesday if he regretted not activating sirens meant to warn Maui residents of natural disasters, Andaya responded, “I do not.” He argued that the sirens are generally used to warn the public of tsunamis or approaching storms and would “not have saved those people.” “The public is trained to seek higher ground in the event that the sirens are sounded,” he said, according to CBS News. “Had we sounded the sirens that night, we were afraid that people would have gone [mountainside], and if that was the case, they would have gone into the fire.” “So that is the reason why; it is our protocol to use WEA [Wireless Emergency Alerts] and EAS [the Emergency Alert System],” he said, referring to text alerts sent to cell phones and alerts sent via television and radio. WATCH: Maui Emergency Chief Defends Not Activating Sirens to Warn of Fires County of Maui / Facebook However, due to widespread power and phone service outages, many on the island could not receive those alerts. And according to Hawaii’s own official government website, the “all-hazard siren system” can be used for a “variety of both natural and human-caused events,” including “wildfires.” He also revealed during the press conference that he was not even on the island on the day the fires began. He was in Oahu, attending a three-day Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster preparedness seminar, Hawaii News Now reported. Still, Andaya defended his response, arguing that the accusation that he is not qualified, “I think, is incorrect.” According to Andaya’s Linkedin profile, prior to taking his current position in 2017, he was the Maui County mayor’s chief of staff beginning in 2011. He claimed that during that time he often reported to emergency operations officials and went through numerous trainings. Prior to that, he was a special assistant to the chancellor of the University of Hawaii Maui College beginning in 2007. Before that, he worked in the state Department of Housing and Human Concerns for about five years. As of Thursday, 111 people have been confirmed dead, with about 1,000 still unaccounted for. WATCH: K9 Units Assist in Search for Survivors in Lahaina Following Wildfires Videos at link
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Post by ExquisiteGerbil on Aug 17, 2023 23:01:38 GMT -5
Maui Emergency Management Head Resigns After Questions of Not Sounding Alarm During Wildfires
PAUL BOIS 17 Aug 2023 Herman Andaya, the head administrator for the Maui Emergency Management Agency, has resigned from his position just shortly after questions erupted about his handling of the wildfire disaster. Hawaii News Now reported Andaya’s departure Thursday when Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen announced that Andaya resigned for “health reasons.” “Given the gravity of the crisis we are facing, my team and I will be placing someone in this key position as quickly as possible and I look forward to making that announcement soon,” Bissen said. An aerial image taken on August 10, 2023, shows destroyed homes and buildings on the waterfront burned to the ground in Lahaina in the aftermath of wildfires in western Maui, Hawaii. (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) The resignation came after a disastrous news conference on Wednesday wherein Andaya defended his decision to not activate sirens in Lahaina, arguing that it would have sent people fleeing into the fires. “The public is trained to seek higher ground in the event that the sirens are sounded,” he said. “Had we sounded the sirens that night, we were afraid that people would have gone [mountainside], and if that was the case, they would have gone into the fire.” “So that is the reason why; it is our protocol to use WEA [Wireless Emergency Alerts] and EAS [the Emergency Alert System],” he said, referring to text alerts sent to cell phones and alerts sent via television and radio. However, as Kristina Wong of Breitbart News noted, “due to widespread power and phone service outages, many on the island could not receive those alerts.” Hawaii’s own official government website also says the “all-hazard siren system” can be used for a “variety of both natural and human-caused events,” including “wildfires.” “He also revealed during the press conference that he was not even on the island on the day the fires began. He was in Oahu, attending a three-day Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster preparedness seminar,” Wong noted. CBS News also reported that Andaya had no actual background in emergency disaster response. “CBS News has learned Maui’s emergency operations chief had no background in disaster response. It’s his department that is responsible for setting off warning sirens, which rang silent during the fires,” noted Norah O’Donnell. link
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Post by OmegaMan on Aug 18, 2023 0:21:37 GMT -5
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Post by maybetoday on Aug 18, 2023 1:12:00 GMT -5
Green Energy Disaster: Hawaiian Electric Blamed for Fires After Concentrating on Green Energy Projects Rather than Safety of Existing InfrastrGreen Energy Disaster: Hawaiian Electric Blamed for Fires After Concentrating on Green Energy Projects Rather than Safety of Existing Infrastructure
By Jim Hoft Aug. 17, 2023 7:00 pm The fires in Maui were not caused by climate change and could have been prevented. Hawaiian Electric reportedly focused on green energy development while ignoring it’s own warnings of its need to increase safety in existing infrastructure. The Daily Signal reported: Hawaiian Electric, the utility company whose power line reportedly played a role in the Hawaiian fires, appears to have focused on green energy development while neglecting to adhere to its own assessment that it needed to increase the safety of its existing infrastructure, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The company concluded that it needed to take much more aggressive action to ensure that its hardware did not emit sparks after the 2019 wildfire season, which was one of the worst recorded in the island of Maui’s history, according to the Journal. The firm does not appear to have done much work to that end before one of its power lines reportedly triggered the spark for last week’s fires that have killed at least 100 people, but it expended significant resources toward green energy initiatives in the years between its assessment and this week’s fires, according to the Journal. “While there was concern for wildfire risk, politically the focus was on electricity generation,” Mina Morita, chair of the state utilities commission from 2011 to 2015, told the Journal. link
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Post by Midnight on Aug 18, 2023 4:19:26 GMT -5
Exclusive: Is The Government of Hawaii Lying About The Missing and Dead on Maui?
By Larry Johnson Aug. 17, 2023 7:00 am I received information tonight from a highly reliable source who is on Maui and is involved with the emergency response. The source is a person of high integrity and shared this information with a mutual friend, who passed it on to me. The source says the situation on Maui is far worse than what is being reported. Our mutual friend checked on the source last week and the source said the Maui government is covering up the deaths. The source had just returned from a big meeting on Oahu convened to coordinate the response to the disaster. The source said that there are 2000 people missing and that FEMA estimates at least 1-2000 dead on Maui, especially Lahaina. It was essentially burned to the ground and the residents were told to shelter in place. Many are probably dead. It is no surprise that Hawaiian authorities upped the death toll today to 106. That number will continue to rise. The source said that Maui authorities will not declare human remains as another countable death unless the body is complete. Really? When you have a corpse killed by being incinerated you will be lucky to find teeth. All human remains are to remain in place until a team of 6-7 forensics guys can determine no foul play. That’s gonna take a couple weeks, so the bodies will either rot, or be stripped by maggots/vermin. This is a catastrophe beyond imagination and the response of the State governments has been appalling. Surprisingly, local rescue workers have high praise for the FEMA response team. They are doing the work the State government refused to do. Instead of transparency it looks like the outside world is being fed disinformation by the local government in order to down play the scope and scale of the disaster. link
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Post by shalom on Aug 18, 2023 21:55:37 GMT -5
[oprah in maui] MAUI OFFICIALS TRYING TO DECIDE WHO MATTERS MORE, LOCALS OR TOURISTS....
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Post by schwartzie on Aug 19, 2023 17:16:53 GMT -5
FEMA Administrator Questioned Over Maui Disaster and Lack of Assistance – Her Response Says It All (VIDEO)
By Jim Hoft Aug. 19, 2023 9:40 am Deanne Criswell is current FEMA Director serving under Joe Biden. Criswell is the first woman nominated to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Biden administration cheered her appointment noting that Deanne has a strong background in climate change. That’s an important attribute for a FEMA director when fires are destroying communities and floods and tornadoes are leveling mainland cities and towns. On Friday Criswell was asked why the people of Maui report no sign of government assistance after the historic fire that ripped across the island killing over 100 locals. Notice how the fake news reporters are NOT screaming at her for her failed emergency operation in Maui. Criswell did not deny the claims but blamed it on the trauma they are experiencing. What? (Video at link) Via Midnight Rider. Now IMAGINE a Trump administration delaying assistance for two weeks after the fire of a century kills over 100 Americans! Imagine how his FEMA Director would be treated by the media!
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Post by ExquisiteGerbil on Aug 19, 2023 18:46:34 GMT -5
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Post by bloodbought on Aug 19, 2023 19:54:46 GMT -5
Maui wildfires death toll climbs to 480 locals claim, as Hawaii morgue workers run out of body bags and survivors are left to recover the charred remains of their loved ones
Locals have been forced to carry out their own search and recovery efforts in the aftermath of the deadly Lahaina wildfires amid the slow response from officials, DailyMail.com has learned Maui resident and volunteer Allisen Medina, 24, has also claimed authorities are underplaying the death toll: 'I know there are at least 480 dead here in Maui and I don't understand why they're not saying that' She said the slow recovery process has led to family members being left to find the charred corpses of their loved ones themselves, including a friend of hers who lost four family members By RUTH STYLES IN LAHAINA, HAWAII, FOR DAILYMAIL.COM PUBLISHED: 14:08 EDT, 18 August 2023 | UPDATED: 18:42 EDT, 18 August 2023 Maui authorities are dramatically underplaying the number of people known to have died in the inferno that ripped through Lahaina last week - with locals telling DailyMail.com that the actual death toll is at least 480 and that morgues had run out of body bags. The figure is quadruple that of the official number of 111 - and some of the relatives of the victims have been left to uncover the remains of their loved ones themselves due to the glacial progress of the search and recovery operation. On Tuesday, Maui mayor Richard Bissen said just 25 per cent of the stricken town had been searched, although he expected that figure to increase to 85 per cent by Saturday. But DailyMail.com photos taken on Wednesday showed hundreds of cars and vehicles still unsearched – with just a handful marked with an orange X to show they'd been looked at. Maui residents say the actual wildfire death toll so far is likely closer to 480 and reveal the MPD's morgue office ran out of body bags in the early days of the ongoing search and recovery operation in Lahaina. The soaring death toll means authorities have also had to bring in mobile morgues with five refrigerated trucks parked outside the Maui Police Department morgue office to store the remains of fire victims. DailyMail.com photos shown an aerial view of a body bag being loaded into a refrigerated truck at the MPD Morgue Office on Thursday. Full story, pictures, and video at link
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Post by Berean on Aug 19, 2023 22:06:42 GMT -5
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Post by Berean on Aug 19, 2023 22:09:38 GMT -5
Many of first victims identified in Hawaii fires are over the age of 70
While full list probably represent broader cross section of ages, deaths underscore risk for elderly people in fast-moving blazes Reuters Fri 18 Aug 2023 09.56 EDT As the first victims of the fires that scorched Maui are identified by authorities and family members, an early pattern has emerged. Many who perished were over the age of 70. Scores more victims will be identified in the weeks and months to come. While the final list of fatalities will almost surely represent a broader cross-section of ages, the deaths underscore that elderly people are at greater risk in fast-moving blazes. Of 111 people confirmed dead, Maui county had only released the names of five victims as of Thursday afternoon: Melva Benjamin, 71, Robert Dyckman, 74, Buddy Jantoc, 79, Alfredo Galinato, 79, and Virginia Dofa, 90. According to the US Fire Administration, people over the age of 65 face the greatest relative risk of dying in a fire: 2.6 times higher than that of the general population. Research from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Fire Administration tie this trend among the elderly to greater frailty and difficulty escaping. In Maui, family and friends posted the names and ages of victims on fundraising websites and of 11 adults identified this way so far, the average age was 70. Among them was Joseph Schilling, 66, Akiva Bluh said on the GoFundMe site. “Joe passed while aiding in evacuating five elderly people in his housing complex. Joe passed as a HERO,” said Bluh, whose family called him Uncle Joe. Reuters was unable to independently verify the stories shared through social media. The fast-moving brush fire, fueled by wind gusts up to 80 miles per hour, raced down the slope of an extinct volcano and into the town of Lahaina on 8 August, destroying or damaging 2,200 buildings and causing an estimated $5.5bin in damage. Survivors have told harrowing tales of barely escaping the flames or fleeing into the Pacific Ocean, sometimes relating that they saw the elderly struggling to evacuate. The Maui catastrophe may also have claimed the lives of children. A seven-year-old boy was among those named on GoFundMe. The Maui county police chief, John Pelletier, said recovery teams have found “remains that may be smaller than other remains … in other words, children”. To help overwhelmed local officials identify and process remains, the US government has deployed 75 experts including coroners, pathologists and X-ray technicians, said Jonathan Greene, a health and human services official. Another GoFundMe post revealed how tragedy struck one family several times over. Faaso and Malui Fonua Tone, ages 76 and 72, Salote Takafua, 46, and seven-year-old Tony Takafua were killed while attempting to flee the fire, according to relative Jasmine Domingo. The blogging site Bloglimy.com said animal lover Franklin Trejos, 68, died trying to rescue his neighbor’s golden retriever. The same site identified victim Carol Hartley, a 60-year-old scuba diving instructor and surfer who worked with children with Down syndrome. Her sister Donna Hartley, who lives in Alabama, told WALA television that Carol’s body could only be identified by her wristwatch. link
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Post by Berean on Aug 19, 2023 22:13:37 GMT -5
A scuba instructor, musician, a family of four: first Hawaii victims named
Tributes pour in for those who died as majority of the more than 100 people killed in Maui wildfires have yet to be identified Abené Clayton Sat 19 Aug 2023 08.59 EDT While the vast majority of the more than 100 people killed during the Maui wildfires last week have yet to be identified, tributes and condolences to a handful of people who have been named as relatives continue to wait to learn if their friends or family are safe. Maui officials said 111 perished in the blaze that roared through the historic town of Lahaina. Many of the victims so far are adults over the age of 65, who face two times the risk of dying in a fire than younger people, according to the US fire administration. The deadliest blaze in recent US history has raged through the island causing millions of dollars in damage and an incalculable amount of pain and trauma as Maui locals begin to parse through charred structures to find what’s salvageable, and what is not. Search crews continue to scour the ruins of Lahaina and ocean waters for the dead. Here are the stories of how some of those who died in the fire lived. One of the victims, Buddy Jantoc, is remembered by his family and fellow community members as a kind man with a love for music, his family and culture. Jantoc, 79, was a drummer and guitar player who relatives said toured with Carlos Santana. More recently he was a fixture at community events, where he played his instruments as hula dancers swayed, according to KITV, Hawaii’s ABC affiliate. Jantoc was living in a housing complex for seniors when the fires erupted. “My papa was older, but for him to be taken from us that way, I think that’s what’s the hardest to come to terms with.” Keshia Alaka’i, Jantoc’s granddaughter told KITV. “He was a good man, a good grandpa, he used to tell me, ‘I’m going to go to Honolulu and see my grandchildren and my daughter. I cannot wait.’ Whatever time he had with his family, he treasured it.” Jantoc’s family and friends have been posting tributes to him and condolences to his loved ones on a Facebook page set up in the musician’s memory. Jantoc was one of the first fire victims identified by Maui officials. Others who perished include Franklin Trejos, who was found deceased and lying on top of the remains of his beloved dog Sam. Trejos stayed in Lahaina to rescue other residents and help save his friend Geoff Bogar’s house. As the flames got closer to Bogar’s residence on Tuesday 10 August, the pair tried to escape. Bogar was found crawling under the smoke by police who took him to the hospital, but Trejos did not make it out. Trejos had lived with Bogar and his wife Shannon Weber-Bogar for years and helped Weber-Bogar manage her seizures when her husband couldn’t, the Associated Press reported. “God took a really good man,” Shannon Weber-Bogar told the outlet. Melva Benjamin, a 71-year-old resident, was also killed during the wildfire. Her family had been using social media to solicit help in the search for Benjamin and her boyfriend Ed Sato, who were trying to escape the flames and head to a shelter, according to a Facebook post from Benjamin’s granddaughter. The family of Virginia Dofa put responsibility for the 90-year-old’s death on the emergency systems on the island that “failed our loved ones”, Dofa’s granddaughter wrote on a Gofundme set up to help relatives, some of whom lost their homes in the recent wildfires. Lahaina locals are also mourning the loss of a surf and scuba instructor named Carole Hartley, who was found in her backyard by her boyfriend. The 60-year-old Alabama native is being eulogized on Facebook and remembered as a free-spirited beach-lover. woman standing with arms outstretched Carole Hartley, a surf and scuba instructor. Photograph: Donna Hartley/AP “Carole lived life out loud with full self expression of love for humans and animals,” reads a comment posted by Jenna Mahini, who donated to a Gofundme set up for Hartley’s partner Charles Paxton. “I feel grateful to know her and be loved by her. May her memory be a blessing to all who love her.” Condolences are pouring in to the loved ones of a family of four that were killed in the Lahaina wildfires. They were Faaso and Malui Fonua Tone, their daughter Salote Takafua, and her seven-year-old son, Tony Takafua, according to news reports and a Gofundme page organized to help the Tone’s daughter and her husband Saane and Kevin Tanaka. The couple are sheltering more than a dozen other people who escaped the fires, according to the Gofundme page, which was created by a relatives. The family died in their car near their home in Lahaina while trying to flee the catastrophic flames, according to Hawaii news now. “Words cannot express how devastating this is for the family, many who have lost everything,” the fundraising page reads. “Kevin and Saane had no time to grieve. They are now sheltering the rest of the family who was able to evacuate in time in their own home … Top-of-mind worries include necessities such as food, water, and clothing, and essential utilities such as electricity and water.” Donna Gomes, 71, was described as the “backbone” of her family, said a Gofundme page honoring the lifelong Lahaina resident, organized by Tehani Kuhaulua, Gomes’s granddaughter. Gomes, whose 72nd birthday would have been on 15 August, was born and raised in Lahaina and enjoyed sharing her childhood stories with her grandchildren, nieces and nephews, according to a Facebook post by Kuhaulua. “As she tried to flee from the wildfires that were sweeping through beloved Lahaina she lost her life on Lahainaluna road,” she wrote. “Ask anyone who knew her or knew of her, she had a very strong, independent will about her, the biggest heart full of tough love.” Joe Schilling, another Lahaina resident, perished while helping senior citizens escape a housing complex as flames surrounded them, according to a Gofundme page created by Schilling’s niece, who described the 66-year-old as, “caring, outgoing, funny, easygoing, joyous, and loving”. Schilling’s sister, Penny Schilling, remembers her brother coming to her aid in the final two weeks of her late husband’s life, she recalled in a 14 August Facebook post. “His presence and assistance was invaluable. He had the hugest heart and was ever ready to assist anyone in need without expecting anything in return. His final act of kindness, which cost him his life, was the culmination of a lifetime of little acts of kindness,” she wrote. After days of searching and with “heavy hearts” Alfredo Galinato’s family announced his passing, on a Gofundme page, organized by Joshua Galinato, Alfredo’s son. Galinato, 79, died while trying to save his family’s home of 30 years in Lahaina. Joshua said that this move was one that was characteristic of his father. “He tried his best to fight it, but you can’t mess with that,” Joshua Galinato told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “Every time there’s a fire in Lahaina, he’s staying in Lahaina, holding down the fort.” link
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Post by Midnight on Aug 20, 2023 4:08:04 GMT -5
John Haller - Maui Destruction. One of Biggest Globalist Crime Scenes in History?
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Post by J.J.Gibbs on Aug 20, 2023 21:59:19 GMT -5
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Post by Shoshanna on Aug 20, 2023 23:19:02 GMT -5
Hawaii Governor Josh Green Announces Over 1,050 Lahaina, Maui Citizens Remain Unaccounted for Including Children (VIDEO)
By Jim Hoft Aug. 20, 2023 7:00 pm Maui Mayor Richard Bissen was peppered with questions during a visit to Lahaina this week. Bissen had no idea how many children are missing. It’s been nearly two weeks since the inferno swept through the town on Tuesday August 8th. The mayor has NO IDEA how many kids are missing! They have already found over 110 bodies in the fire. Hawaii Governor Josh Green announced on Sunday that over 1,000 people in Lahaina, Maui remain missing including children. Hawaii Governor Josh Green: “More than a thousand are unaccounted for, about 1,050… Do I wish those sirens went off? Of course, I do. And I think that the answer that the Emergency Administrator from Maui who resigned was, of course, unsatisfactory to the world, but it is the case that we have historically not used those kinds of warnings for fires.” Via Kanekoa the Great. Video at link
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Post by maybetoday on Aug 21, 2023 23:12:59 GMT -5
‘We Love God and We Love People’: Maui Churches Take in Survivors from Hawaii Wildfires
KAHANA, HI- AUGUST 15: Lunch is served at Citizen Church with the help of Mercy Chefts to displaced residents and others who are unable to get food on Tuesday August 15, 2023 in Kahana, HI. The death toll continues to rise for the fires on Maui. (Photo by Matt McClain/The …Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images ELAINE MALLON 21 Aug 2023 Maui’s wildfires have claimed the lives of at least 114 people, have left more than 1,000 missing, and have destroyed around 2,000 buildings, but churches across the Hawaiian island have brought light to a dark and dire situation. King’s Cathedral — one of the largest churches on the island — has sheltered 900 people since fires broke out in the community of Kahului. Hawaii Public Radio’s Russel Subiono reported that Pastor Shannon Marocco worked with government officials in tending to the survivors by offering them “three meals per day, clothing, toiletries and 24-hour first aid care.” Marocco said they are also receiving love and support from generous donors across the globe: “We had thousands of Amazon boxes show up to our church,” Marocco told the outlet. “We’re really praying that God would allow us to be a storehouse.” Members of the church are now working on providing temporary housing on church property for those who need it. They bought 10 acres of land across from the church, along with dozens of portable, tiny houses. In the community of Lahaina — 23 miles away from Kahului — a couple leading their Filipino congregation have 20 members sleeping in their parish hall of Koinonia Pentecostal Church, NPR News reported. Pastor Estrella Arquero said in addition to providing shelter, they have food, gasoline, water, and even pet supplies for survivors. “That is what we are called for to do,” Arquero said. “That we care for people. In fact, the mission of our church is we love God, and we love people.” One family from their congregation — a husband and wife — had fled the fires in such a hurry that she put two different slippers on her feet. The wildfires across Maui have the highest death toll in modern U.S. history, NBC News reported. On Monday, President Joe Biden arrived on the island to talk with survivors and view the damage, Breitbart News reported. No, it was just a photo op! 😡
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Post by ExquisiteGerbil on Aug 22, 2023 3:28:37 GMT -5
Hawaii State Government Attempts Information Blackout On Maui Fire - Refuses Media Access
BY TYLER DURDEN SUNDAY, AUG 20, 2023 - 02:00 PM The West Maui disaster is becoming less about the fire and more about the government's bizarre response to the aftermath. Independent media sources and some mainstream media sources have confirmed multiple instances of the Democrat controlled government's mismanagement that led to the escalation of the tragedy. The circus included a woke water management bureaucrat who believes water is "godlike" and that it must be distributed according to the rules of "equity; the same official withheld vital firefighting resources for a day while Maui burned. The state government has been thoroughly embarrassed, but instead of responding with humility, they have doubled down and gone on the attack. The Governor of Hawaii, Josh Green, took a wild swing at independent reporting, telling people not to listen to information from social media and "influencers." It's hard to say what his definition of an "influencer" is, only that he is clearly hostile to anyone reporting news outside of the government narrative. Green's disapproval of media reporting is not limited to alternative journalists, however. It appears that there is now an information blackout being instituted by the state. Corporate journalists are also being denied access to the area of the fire damage path as well as access to any details surrounding the investigation into how the fires may have started. The lockdown is reminiscent of the state's recent draconian covid response and has undertones similar to the Hurricane Katrina calamity in 2005. It is possible that the Hawaiian government got a taste of ultimate power over the past few years and now they think that 1st Amendment rights no longer apply. The editor of the Maui Times reiterates that the government is shutting out all media inquiries and they are not to blame for the lack of confirmed updates on the situation. There are a few possible takeaways to be gathered here: First, it's clear that independent reporting is having an effect in exposing state mismanagement, which is why they are attacking "influencers" and putting access on ice. Second, public pressure must be immense, because even the local media is trying to stave off the torches and pitchforks by reiterating that they have no access. When was the last time you saw the mainstream media calling out information controls instead of working in direct lockstep with officials? Third, there is something going on in Maui beyond bureaucratic hubris. Why block the media from going to the site of the fire? Why try to inoculate the public to any information outside of government sources? Is there something they are trying to hide beyond incompetence? There is evidence to suggest that a major land grab is already in progress, with wealthy interests as well as state interests circling the charred Maui carcass ready to feed. There are also questions as to the true source of the fires. Frankly, if government policy decisions led to the deaths of hundreds of people then they should pay the price for their blunders. If other shady activities are afoot, then the public has a right to know. The state is not given license to deny media examination of the event. Democrats in Hawaii are trying to turn the tables and make the calamity about who deserves to report the news, when they should be scrambling to save their own skins in the face of intense public scrutiny. These people deserve to be placed under a very large and uncomfortable microscope. link
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Post by ExquisiteGerbil on Aug 22, 2023 23:49:30 GMT -5
FEMA: ‘We Still Expect Several More Days’ to Finish Maui Search
IAN HANCHETT 22 Aug 2023 On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN’s “Situation Room,” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell stated that the search of Maui’s burn zone is 87% finished, but it will take “several more days” for the search to be completed. Criswell said, “I had an opportunity to get a full brief from our urban search and rescue teams that are on the ground in Maui. And while we’re 87% complete, where we find ourselves today is in an area that now requires some heavy equipment to go through the last bit of structures that have been burned to go in there and make sure that we are doing a thorough job in accounting for everybody that may have been perished in this fire. And so, we still expect several more days for these teams to continue to go through this area. But, again, we’re doing it very deliberately to make sure that we cover every square inch.” She continued, “As we continue to work with the community and with the local officials, we already have everybody out of non-congregate sheltering. They’re all in either a hotel room or maybe an Airbnb or staying with family and friends. And we have a joint housing task force here on the island that’s made up of the state, supported with our federal partners and the American Red Cross, to talk through what these long-term solutions are going to be as people start to make decisions about what their next steps will be. link
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