11/14/2023 0 Comments Who wrote im still standingOn Thursday, FEMA announced it would make money and loans available to qualified victims of wildfires in Maui County. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said its own leader, administrator Deanne Criswell, would headline the federal entourage. “It’s just sad to know that they were alone.”Ī trio of top federal officials was traveling to Hawaii to meet with state and local leaders in a show of unity and commitment to aid. They were buddies, they were best friends,” he said. And our cat was in the shower about three feet away,” he said. “And we went right to the bedroom to where we knew the dogs were, and both dogs were on the bed, and they were cuddling, they were next to each other. When he and his wife, Steffani, got to the home they talked to the dogs, hoping they would present themselves. Kirkman knew his animals were likely dead because a tracking collar stopped tracking Tuesday afternoon, when the wind-whipped fire was hitting Lahaina. “It was just pure - I don’t even have the words for it. The devastation in Lahaina was like nothing Kirkman had ever seen. “We knew nothing was there, but me and my wife, there was no way we were going to leave our animals’ bodies to just be thrown into the rubble,” he said today. KAHULUI, Maui - Already having lost his home and his father’s ashes, Kimo Kirkman returned to his ruined house in Lahaina for one reason: his dogs and cat. One person was spotted by air in the water since then and recovered, and was described as unresponsive. The Coast Guard has not found anyone else in the water to rescue. Eight good Samaritan vessels also responded to an emergency broadcast for aid, she said. The Coast Guard rescued 17 from Tuesday evening into early Wednesday, but some people may have been able to get out of the water themselves, she said. She described it as a "really hectic scene." The reports of up to 100 people who had fled into the water was an estimate, she said. “There was smoke and fire near the water, but they were fortunate to have been there during the rescues at a time when the smoke lifted, for them to be able to see the people who needed to be rescued,” she said. Kirksey, commander of Coast Guard Sector Honolulu, said today.īoats faced rough seas from the extreme winds that helped fuel the wildfire in Lahaina, Kirksey said. Smoke prevented a helicopter crew from seeing the victims Tuesday, Coast Guard Capt. Coast Guard crews that rescued 17 people fleeing a deadly fire were faced with rough seas, heavy smoke and fears that as many as 100 people needed saving, an official said today. "We are now visiting shelters and rural communities on Maui and the Big Island and will continue to identify and fill meal needs." "WCK’s Relief Team reached Maui with hundreds of sandwiches that were quickly delivered to emergency workers fighting the blaze near Lahaina," it said in a statement. Some of its team members arrived in Maui earlier this week, the organization said on its social media channels. The World Central Kitchen, the food-relief nonprofit founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, is feeding first responders and victims. The nonprofit's main mission in the fire-ravaged areas of Maui and the Big Island has been to provide emergency shelter, but it's also providing food and emotional support, and it plans to help with damage estimates and distribution of relief supplies, according to a Red Cross statement. The relief org said that an army of volunteers, including some of the 1,300 residents who recently began training for Red Cross duty, was expected to supplement its efforts in the coming days. The American Red Cross said Friday it has been at work 24 hours a day, providing 2,100 overnight shelter stays to those displaced by flames and evacuations in Hawaii. Josh Green and other officials on Saturday are expected to provide another update into the crisis, which he has said will most likely be the largest natural disaster in Hawaii’s state history (it became a state in 1959). There is no official number of missing known, and the death toll could go up as more remains are found in the wreckage of the town. Others are still in the dark about whether their relatives and loved ones are alive or dead. “It’s a war zone,” said Kimo Kirkman, who went back to get the remains of their two dogs and cat. Some residents were able to survey the damage, and what little has been left of their homes. Some survivors believe they were not sufficiently warned through emergency alerts as the crisis deepened, adding to the confusion in what has become one of Hawaii’s deadliest natural disasters. Three other alert systems were implemented, according to Hawaii Emergency Services Administration. Maui’s warning sirens were not activated as deadly wildfires approached the town of Lahaina, emergency officials said. Containment of the Pulehu/Kihei fire was 80%, and the Upcountry Maui fire is 50 percent contained.
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