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Maui’s emergency management chief, Herman Andaya, has resigned a day after
facing mounting public criticism for not activating public alert sirens as
devastating wildfires raged across swaths of the Hawaiian island.

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said he has “accepted the resignation of Maui
Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) Administrator Herman Andaya. Citing health
reasons, Andaya submitted his resignation effective immediately.”



“Given the gravity of the crisis we are facing, my team and I will be placing
someone in this key position as quickly as possible,” Bissen added.

Outdoor alert sirens are widespread on Maui, and residents have grown used to
hearing them activated for regular testing in anticipation of public emergencies
such as tsunamis and earthquakes. However, many residents have criticized the
decision by Andaya’s agency not to activate the sirens as the wildfires were
raging, saying it cost lives — especially those in the devastated historic town
of Lahaina.

So far, at least 111 people have died in the Hawaii wildfires, the deadliest in
the United States in a century. Officials warn that the final death toll is
expected to climb.

Emergency response questioned as Hawaii residents survey wildfire ruins

Despite growing public criticism, Andaya was steadfast in defending his decision
Wednesday, a day before he resigned. Asked by reporters if he had any regrets
about not deploying the public siren system, he replied: “I do not.”



He said he feared the sirens were “used primarily” for tsunamis and that there
was a risk that activating them in this instance would have sent people fleeing
to higher ground. “If that was the case, then they would have gone into the
fire,” he said. Maui instead relied on alerts sent by text messages and
broadcasts on television and radio, he added.


Wildfire risks are rising across U.S., from Hawaii to Oregon to Texas

The public siren system has been in place since a deadly tsunami hit Hawaii in
April 1946, killing more than 150 people. Officials established the Pacific
Tsunami Warning Center and alert system in response, “the first tsunami warning
system in the U.S.,” according to the Hawaii government.

Emergency officials have previously confirmed that other forms of public alert
systems were activated amid the inferno, including text messages sent to phones
and emergency television and radio messages. However, many residents have said
there were communications and cellphone outages during the crisis.




Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez (D) has launched a review of the
decision-making and policies leading up to, during and after the wildfires. The
investigation is expected to include analyzing decisions not to sound sirens and
could take months to complete, she said. The probe will be undertaken by “a
third-party private organization with experience in emergency management” to
ensure it is “an impartial, independent review,” she added in a statement
Thursday.



Earlier this week, Rep. Jill N. Tokuda (D-Hawaii) suggested that the alerts
might not have helped as much as some think. If residents heard the sirens, they
“would not know what the crisis was,” she said.

“You might think it’s a tsunami, by the way, which is our first instinct. You
would run toward land, which in this case would be toward fire,” the
congresswoman told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

Hawaii residents fear losing Lahaina as fires make housing crisis worse

Questions remain over what sparked the wildfires and why mitigation steps — such
as preemptively shutting off power to reduce the fire risk — weren’t followed.



Residents, meanwhile, have criticized the pace of search and rescue efforts for
missing people. Many residents remain without power and water, and some have
expressed anger at tourists for continuing to undertake boat trips and other
vacation activities amid the devastation.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green (D) issued an emergency proclamation at the weekend
declaring that nonessential travel to West Maui was “strongly discouraged,” and
tourism officials have urged people to put off nonessential travel to the
islands.

The fire damaged or destroyed 2,207 structures, the vast majority of which were
homes, according to a joint assessment by the Pacific Disaster Center and the
Federal Emergency Management Agency. The estimated cost to rebuild is over $5
billion, a figure likely to rise.

President Biden, who has faced some criticism for not visiting Hawaii sooner,
will travel to Maui and meet with first responders Monday alongside first lady
Jill Biden.




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 * Some have been encouraging tourists to stay away from Maui after fires
   ravaged parts of the island.
 * Daniel Kalahiki, owner of the food truck Like Poke, said it was irresponsible
   and hurting businesses.
 * He said tourists should avoid Lahaina, the hardest-hit area, but visit other
   parts of Maui and volunteer to help locals.
   

Some tourists have been encouraged to cancel their planned trips to Maui after
fires devastated parts of the island, but one food truck owner said telling
tourists to stay away could do more harm than good.

Jason Momoa, an actor and Native Hawaiian, was among those urging tourists to
stay away from the island. Other residents and activists also took to TikTok to
tell travelers not to visit or to leave if they were already there.

But Daniel Kalahiki, owner of the food truck Like Poke, posted a series of
Instagram videos saying those messages were misguided. Kalahiki's food truck is
located in Wailuku and was not directly hit by the fires that impacted Kula and
burnt much of Lahaina to the ground, killing more than 100 people.

"Lahaina's closed. We grieve for them, we cry for them, we do everything we can
for them, and it will never, ever be okay or be the same," Kalahiki said, adding
the only people who should be in Lahaina are residents or those who are
rebuilding. "But we still need the rest of the island to be open so we can
continue to live."

He said most of Maui still needs and wants tourists to come.




"Kihei, Wailea, open. Wailuku, Kahalui, open. Paia, Haiku, open. Hana, open. All
of those places are still open," he said. "All of those local businesses —
hundreds of local businesses that depend on at least a little bit of tourism, as
do I. Although my business is based on locals, I still need that little bit of
tourism."



Kalahiki said in another video that what he feared was already becoming reality,
adding that people all over Maui were being financially impacted, even losing
their jobs or businesses, because people are telling tourists to stay away or
confronting the ones who are already there.

He mentioned several celebrities and prominent figures that he thought were
acting irresponsibly by telling people not to come, including Momoa.

"Jason Momoa, have fun on your late-night shows throwing spears with your
buddies, but what're you guys going to do for us now?" he said.

A representative for Momoa did not immediately respond to Insider's request for
comment.

Kalahiki urged tourists coming to Maui not to cancel their plans but to vacation
responsibly by staying away from Lahaina and instead visiting areas on the east
side of the island that were not hit by the fires. He encouraged any tourists to
take some time out of their trip to volunteer while they are on Maui and to
support local businesses.


Full screen


1 of 10 Photos in Gallery©PAULA RAMON/Getty Images


PHOTOS SHOW MAUI AFTER WILDFIRES DAMAGED MORE THAN 2,200 STRUCTURES AND 2,170
ACRES ON THE ISLAND

 * Wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui have killed dozens of people.
   Hundreds are still missing. 
 * The Pacific Disaster Center reported that more than 2,200 structures were
   damaged or destroyed.
 * Photos show aftermath from the wildfires, which also affected the historic
   town of Lahaina. 

Wildfires devastated the Hawaiian island of Maui this week, killing at least 80
people and burning more than 2,100 acres of land as of Saturday. 

The County of Maui on Saturday confirmed the number of fatalities in a statement
that said firefighters are continuing to extinguish flare-ups and contain fires
around the island. The wildfires have left destruction in their wake, including
in the historic town of Lahaina.

The Pacific Disaster Center said that as of Friday, the Lahaina Fire resulted in
an estimated 2,719 structures exposed, 2,207 structures damaged or destroyed,
and 2,170 acres burned. The wildfires began on August 8. 

See More


Kalahiki did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment via
Instagram and phone.

"We all still need to pay our bills so that we can contribute to helping the
people in Lahaina and Kula that have lost everything. We still need to survive,"
he said, adding: "It will be the worst day of my life, if I lose my house to the
bank because of Maui being 'closed.'"




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