After the devastating fires on Maui in the US state of Hawaii with well over a hundred dead, US President Joe Biden visited the disaster area.
Upon arrival on Monday, President and First Lady Jill Biden was greeted by Hawaii Governor Josh Green, among others. The President flew over the disaster area in a helicopter to get an aerial view of the destruction.
Among other things, Biden also made a tour of the particularly affected town of Lahaina, which had around 13,000 inhabitants before the accident. During his visit to Maui, which lasted several hours, meetings with emergency services, survivors and officials were also on the agenda.
At least 114 dead and many missing
The number of dead after the fires on the island has now risen to at least 114, as the responsible district administration announced on Sunday. The number of victims could still rise, hundreds of people were still missing. Helpers continued to search the burned-out building with cadaver dogs. The district announced that 85 percent of these had now been inspected.
The forest and bush fires broke out on August 8 in several places on Maui and the neighboring island of Hawaii, which bears the same name as the state. The authorities’ handling of the fire was heavily criticized. For example, no warning sirens were used at the beginning of the fire.
