Lahaina

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The death toll due to wildfires in Hawaii's Maui has climbed to 96 and hundreds of people are reported to be still missing. This is the deadliest fire in the United States in more than a century. Hawaiian authorities have begun a probe into the handling of the fire which started four days back. As per the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the cost to build Lahaina was estimated at $5.5 billion. 

There is growing anger among residents as they pointed out that no warnings were issued by officials about the fire. On Saturday, authorities vowed to examine Hawaii's emergency notification systems. 

Here's a look at the latest updates:

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> Till now, 96 people have died due to the wildfires, according to the Maui County website. On Saturday, Hawaii Governor Josh Green warned that the death toll would continue to increase as more victims were discovered. And as per Maui County Police Chief John Pelletier, dogs trained to detect bodies have covered only three per cent of the search area. 

> More than 2,200 structures were damaged or destroyed as the fire tore through Lahaina, according to a report by the news agency AFP. A town with a population of over 12,000, Lahania has been reduced to ruins, its lively hotels and restaurants turned to ashes. 

> On Saturday night, firefighters were battling at least one other blaze in Maui. The Pulehu/Kihei fire in the south was declared 100 per cent contained.

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> Speaking to CNN, Hawaii Congresswoman Jill Tokuda said that officials were taken by surprise by the tragedy. "We underestimated the lethality, the quickness of fire," she said.

> The disaster began just after midnight on Tuesday when a brush fire was reported in the town of Kula, roughly 55 kilometres from Lahaina. Five hours later, there were power cuts across the town. 

> Maui also suffered numerous power outages during the crisis, preventing many residents from receiving emergency alerts on their cell phones 

> Speaking to AFP, a resident said, "The mountain behind us caught on fire and nobody told us jack. You know when we found that there was a fire? When it was across the street from us."

> On Saturday, Governor Green said officials secured 1,000 hotel rooms for people who lost their homes and were arranging rental properties to serve as housing at no cost to families. A report by the news agency Reuters said over 1,400 people had been taken in at emergency shelters.

> Defending the immediate response, Green said the situation had been complicated by the presence of multiple fires and by the strength of the winds. "Having seen that storm, we have doubts that much could have been done with a fiery fast-moving fire like that," he added. 

(With inputs from agencies)

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