Maui wildfire: People jump into water to escape flames and smoke – VIDEO

A wildfire is burning on the Hawaiian island of Maui, which has been further fueled by powerful winds from Hurricane Dora. 

US-based media outlets reported on Wednesday (August 9) that people on the island had to jump into the ocean on Tuesday to escape flames and smoke. 

The Coast Guard told CBS News that a dozen people have been rescued in the town of Lahaina. Coast Guard Lt. Elaine Simon told the outlet that the wind was blowing thick black smoke toward the water. 

A helicopter and boat were also deployed by the coast guard to rescue several people from the water after they attempted to flee from the flames. 

In a telephonic interview with the Associated Press on Wednesday, County of Maui spokesperson Mahina Martin said that the wildfire was widespread in Lahaina, including Front Street — an area of the historic town and popular tourist attraction. 

According to a report by CBS Honolulu affiliate KGMB-TV, the “videos on social media showed a wall of flames descending on Front Street in Lahaina and destroying a number of businesses”. 

Hawaiian Electric Company said that thousands of its customers were currently without power Wednesday morning. Poweroutage.us stated that as of 1:20am (7:20 am ET), nearly 20% of the county (14,114 customers) was without power. 

Hawaii’s Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke told CNN that the state is facing severe challenges to fight the flames. Luke said, “When we deal with hurricanes and disasters following hurricanes, we’re usually dealing with heavy rain, we’re dealing with flooding.” 

Luke added, “The fact that we have wildfires in multiple areas as a result of indirectly from a hurricane is unprecedented; it’s something that Hawaii residents and the state have not experienced.” 

(With inputs from agencies)

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