More than a third of the burn zone in Maui has now been searched, and authorities have confirmed that the death toll is at least 111 people, some of whom were children.
Officials in Hawaii say that there are still more than 1,000 people unaccounted for since last week’s wildfire, which has been determined to be the deadliest in the U.S. in over a century.
Maui Police Chief John Pelletier shared the difficulty of the search efforts earlier this week, and on Wednesday, he echoed the historic sadness surrounding the blaze.
“No one has ever seen this that is alive today – not this size, not this number, not this volume,” Pelletier said. “And we’re not done.”
Pelletier also noted that first responders are not only recovering their neighbors and fellow residents but also “their loved ones and members of their families.”
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green shared that identifying victims will be no easy task, as remains are largely unrecognizable and fingerprints are rarely found.
A genetics team has been working to identify remains, Pelletier said, so “that we can make sure that we’re finding who our loved ones are and that we make the notifications with dignity and honor.”
Authorities have asked relatives who have loved ones that are missing to provide DNA samples, and as of Tuesday, 41 had done so, local officials shared.
At this moment, firefighters are still battling fires burning on Maui, according to Maui County Fire Chief Brad Ventura.
“We are spread thin, and we are at multiple locations throughout the island,” Ventura said while also noting that “if something should come, we’re ready for it.”
For more on the fires in Maui, check out this week’s episode of The On Deadline Podcast here, on the Audacy App, or wherever you stream your podcasts.
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