As catastrophic wildfires spread across the Hawaiian island of Maui, 911 and cell phone services are down, roughly 14,000 homes and businesses are without power, and hospitals are overwhelmed with burn and smoke-inhalation victims. Home to about 117,000 people, Maui residents and tourists remain stranded on the island, with some trying to escape the fire and smoke by jumping into the ocean — resulting in 12 Coast Guard rescues, as reported by CNN. The downtown area of Lahaina, a small town with a population of 13,000 people, was mostly destroyed.
Evacuation orders are in place and about 1,800 travelers are sheltering at the Kahului Airport. At least six people have died. Additional Hawaiian National Guardsmen are expected to join Maui officials late Wednesday to assist in managing the crisis. Hawaii Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke (Gov. Josh Green is currently out of state) declared a state of emergency and called the crisis "unprecedented" on Wednesday and described the difficulty of coordinating evacuations.
