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2023 Hawaii wildfires
Deadly wildfires on Maui and Hawaiʻi, U.S.
2023 Hawaii wildfires
Top: Lāhainā burning as seen from the ocean and harbor Middle: Burned cars and buildings Bottom: FEMA officials perform searches and Governor Josh Green reviews damage
In early August 2023, a series of wildfires broke out in the U.S. state of Hawaii, predominantly on the island of Maui. The wind-driven fires prompted evacuations and caused widespread damage, killing at least 102 people and leaving two people missing in the town of Lahaina on Maui's northwest coast. The proliferation of the wildfires was attributed to dry, gusty conditions created by a strong high-pressure area north of Hawaii and Hurricane Dora to the south.[11]
An emergency declaration was signed on August 8, authorizing several actions, including activation of the Hawaii National Guard, appropriate actions by the director of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency and the Administrator of Emergency Management, and the expenditure of state general revenue funds for relief of conditions created by the fires.[12] By August 9, the state government of Hawaii issued a state of emergency for the entirety of the state.[11] On August 10, U.S. President Joe Biden issued a federal major disaster declaration.[13]
MODIS satellite 1 km and VIIRS satellite 375 m active fire detections (colored by the day of burning and whether they were detected in the daytime or nighttime) and 3 m PlanetScope burned areas (red polygons) over Maui.[21]