Hawaii in Flames

Fires in Hawaii

Photo by Joanne Francis on Unsplash

Since Aug. 8, Hawaiians have been scrambling and panicking as the house they had grown up in burned to bits. 

“Many places where I would go out to eat with my friends of the island, as well as parks I would spend time in have sadly been destroyed,” junior Carson Conway said.

The fire originated from Hurricane Dora which is a powerful stage four hurricane. On July 31, a tropical depression near Mexico erupted. The depression did not move towards the Southern part of the U.S. but crossed into Central America and then into the Pacific Ocean. 

On Aug. 1, the tropical depression intensified into a tropical storm. As the tropical storm made its way towards Hawaii, warm ocean temperatures strengthened the storm and created Hurricane Dora. 

While Hurricane Dora was bolstering, Hawaii was experiencing dry conditions because of climate change. Hurricane Dora quickly made its way through the Pacific Ocean; however, the hurricane did not hit Hawaii. It passed 700 miles south of Hawaii. The winds from Hurricane Dora traveled north and started the destruction of Hawaii.

“One of my closest friends, Crash, has definitely been affected by the fires,” Conway said. “Crash would often visit the west side of Maui in cities such as Kaanapali and Kapalua for surfing and boogie boarding tournaments.”

The powerful winds created the blazing fires in Hawaii. There are multiple reasons why the fires began, from active power lines falling to the dry conditions. The fires have caused chaos throughout the entire island. 

Hundreds of people have been injured and 106 people have been confirmed dead. 2,170 acres in Maui have been burned. This is equivalent to 21 of Maclay’s campuses.

“We need to set up a fund to help people rebuild their homes, parks, schools and churches to help the native people of Hawaii,” sophomore Max Ramsey said.

In West Maui more than 2,200 homes have been destroyed. Overall, the fires have caused $5.6 billion in damages; however, many organizations have created donation drives to help the victims.

“The fire has definitely brought much sadness to the lives of my mom, dad and sister,” Conway said. “Knowing the fact that countless friends, and families that we speak to often, even when we are not on the island, are constantly suffering and going through pain from this deeply sadeness us.”