Hawaiian wildfires kill at least 36 on Maui

Maui County announced the deaths Wednesday night without giving any additional details. Earlier in the day, officials said 271 buildings had been destroyed and dozens of people were injured.  The U.S. Coast Guard rescued 12 people Wednesday morning from the ocean near Lahaina, a town on Maui. Travel around Lahaina was restricted by authorities Wednesday, but the airport remained open as evacuations took place across Maui. Emergency services were unavailable to western Maui, and about 13,000 citizens were without power early Wednesday due to wildfire damage.

How did the wildfires start? Authorities have not determined the cause of the fire. But Category 4 Hurricane Dora, despite traveling several hundred miles south of Hawaii, fanned strong winds across the state and helped the fires spread. Winds were recorded at 80 mph in inland Maui.

Dig deeper: Listen to Paul Butler’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about record-high temperatures and climate change.