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Maui fires live updates: Death toll rises to 55 as Hawaii battles blazes
The latest news and live updates on the wildfires scorching Maui. Get updates as thousands evacuate Hawaii, navigating smoke, power outages and fire damage.
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Questions have swirled on whether the siren system in Maui failed to properly warn residents to evacuate as wildfires rapidly spread in the island's west side.
Bissen said on NBC's "TODAY" show Friday: “I think this was an impossible situation.”
"The winds that hit us in on that side of the island … in some areas, gusts were up to 80 mph, some sustained between 45 and 60-65 mph. So, everything happened so quickly," he explained. "I can’t comment on whether or not the sirens sounded or not, but I know the fires came up so quickly and they spread so fast. There were some initially, when there was a smaller fire, homes were evacuated."
He noted that "many, many" people evacuated from their homes as 2,100 people were in shelters Tuesday night, not including many visitors in Kaanapali who sheltered in place in their hotels.
"Again, there was no power, there was no water. So that’s what we were dealing with," he added.
Hawaii Emergency Management records showed no indication that warning sirens were triggered before the fires erupted, officials said, and some Lahaina survivors said they didn’t hear any sirens, but fled when they saw flames or heard explosions, The Associated Press reported.
Bissen said the focus in Maui is finding missing people and reuniting families as the death toll mounted to 55.
“I think that number could go up,” he said on NBC’s “TODAY” show Friday, noting so far the victims found were outside buildings.
“So we have not yet searched in the interior of the buildings. We’re waiting for FEMA to help with that search as they are equipped to handle the hazmat conditions of the building.”
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