Death toll from Maui wildfire reaches 89, making it the deadliest in the US in more than 100 years

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — A raging wildfire that swept through a picturesque town on the Hawaiian island of Maui this week has killed at least 89 people, authorities said Saturday, making it the deadliest U.S. wildfire of the past century. “We know we’ve got to go quick, but we’ve got to do it right,”At least 2,200 buildings were damaged or destroyed in West Maui, Green said, of which 86% were residential. A fourth broke out Friday evening in Kaanapali, a coastal community in West Maui north of Lahaina, but crews were able to extinguish it, authorities said. Maui County’s hazard mitigation plan updated in 2020 identified Lahaina and other West Maui communities as having frequent wildfires and several buildings at risk. The report also noted West Maui had the island’s second-highest rate of households without a vehicle and the highest rate of non-English speakers.