A powerline downed during a storm might have caused the first wildfire reported on the Hawaiian island of Maui, footage shows.
The video, captured at the Maui Bird Conservation Center, near Makawao, appears to show a bright flash in the woods at the exact time ten sensors recorded a significant incident in Hawaiian Electric’s grid on August 7.
Jennifer Pribble, a senior research coordinater at the center, described the footage of the flash on Instagram and said: ‘I think that is when a tree is falling on a power line.’
It comes as the island’s death toll reached 111, with only nine victims identified, according to Maui Police.
While the Makawao fire had nothing to do with the inferno that devastated the historic town of Lahaina, it was the first of several reported on Maui on August 7.
A powerline downed during a storm on Monday August 7 might have caused the first wildfire reported on the Hawaiian island of Maui, footage shows
The video, captured at the Maui Bird Conservation Center, near Makawao, appears to show a bright flash in the woods (pictured)
Whisker Labs, a company that uses a sensor network to monitor electric grids across the United States, told the Washington Post the bright light was probably an ‘arc flash’, which happens when a power line ‘faults’.
The powerline releases power, usually through sparks, when it has come into contact with something, according to the company.
‘This is strong confirmation — based on real data — that utility grid faults were likely the ignition source for multiple wildfires on Maui,’ Bob Marshall, the founder and CEO of Whisker Labs, told the Washington Post.
On Monday, Lahainan locals blamed downed power lines and unkempt brush for the devastating wildfire that decimated their historic town.
One couple has already filed a lawsuit against Hawaiian Electric Industries – which serves 95 percent of Hawaii‘s 1.4 million residents – and its companies HECO, MECO and HELCO.
The pair claimed that the power companies ‘inexcusably kept their power lines energized during forecasted high fire danger conditions’, according to Fox News.
Footage recorded at 6.43am by local Shane Treu also showed the flames and a downed power line. ‘This is right across from my house, power line went down,’ he says.
Jennifer Pribble, a senior research coordinater at the center, described the footage of the flash on Instagram and said: ‘I think that is when a tree is falling on a power line’
New video posted on August 8 at 6.43am by a local Lahaina resident shows a downed power line and flames
But the couple, Monica and Rede, allege that the National Weather Service had issued a High Wind Watch and Red Flag Warning which cautioned energized power lines could increase the rate in which the fires could spread.
They claim that by acting improperly during the devastating fires, the power companies ’caused loss of life, serious injuries, destruction of hundreds of homes and businesses, displacement of thousands of people, and damage to many of Hawaii’s historic and cultural sites.’
The suit said: ‘Scores of people burned to death. Other victims suffered severe burns, smoke inhalation and additional serious injuries.’
Hawaiian Electric have continued to say they will not ‘comment on pending litigation.
A spokesman added: ‘Our immediate focus is on supporting emergency response efforts on Maui and restoring power for our customers and communities as quickly as possible.
Pictured: An aerial view of Lahaina, which was devastated by wildfires last week
Pictured: A wildfire burns on the island of Maui near an intersection in Lahaina, Hawaii, last week, in an image provided by the County Of Maui
‘At this early stage, the cause of the fire has not been determined and we will work with the state and county as they conduct their review.’
It comes as nine victims have been named, inlcuding a family of four.
Franklin Trejos, 68, Carole Hartley, 60, Buddy Jantoc, 79 and Robert Dyckman, 74, were all victims of the Lahaina blaze.
Faaso and Malui Fonua Tone, Salote Takafua, and her son, Tony Takafua, also passed away.
Now, questions being asked about how prepared authorities were for the catastrophe, despite the islands’ exposure to natural hazards such as tsunamis, earthquakes and violent storms.
Residents were forced to flee on foot after seemingly receiving no alert from the state’s emergency warning systems.
The disaster in Lahaina is the deadliest wildfire the US has faced in the past century as the death toll surpassed 2018’s Camp Fire in California, which virtually wiped the small town of Paradise off the map and killed 86 people.
The horror of residents’ desperate dash escape to fires was also revealed by the scores of charred cars along the front, likely used by those fleeing the fires.
Inland, the hall of Lahaina’s historic Waiola Church and nearby Lahaina Hongwanji Mission were also engulfed in flames.
‘It’s gone, the social hall, the sanctuary, the annex, all of it,’ the church’s longtime lay minister told USA TODAY. ‘It is totally unimaginable.’
The horror of residents’ desperate dash escape to fires was also revealed by the scores of charred cars along the front
The church has been at the centre of the community for exactly 200 years, celebrating its anniversary just three months ago.
Satellite images highlight just how far the fires have spread over Maui, with devastated landscapes stretching for miles.
Other pictures show whole communities of homes burned to the ground which will take years to rebuild.
At a press conference, Lt Governor Sylvia Luke said she had flown over Lahaina, a town of 12,000 people, to see the damage with her own eyes.
‘[It] was just so shocking and devastating… The whole town was devastated, the whole town was decimated,’ she said.
She added that ‘the road to recovery will be long.’
Democratic Senator for Hawaii, Brian Schatz, warned Lahaina has been ‘almost totally burned to the ground’.
Meanwhile, experts have warned insured property losses from the wildfires have topped $3billion, according to estimates.
Where houses once stood is now ash and cinder. Thousands have lost their homes and hundreds are missing 48 hours after the fires
Prior to the fire, relatively few natural disasters had occurred in Hawaii meaning homeowners benefited from the lowest home Insurance rates. Data from consumer services company Bankrate shows the average homeowner pays just $382 a year in the Aloha State.
But this could soon change, experts warned, after catastrophe modeling firm Karen Clark and Company (KCC) estimated that losses had amounted to $3.2 billion.
KCC analyzed satellite and aerial imagery and found more than 2,200 structures fell within the perimeter of the Lahaina blaze. An additional 3,000 structures were impacted by smoke or secondary effects.
The firm wrote in its report: ‘In Hawaii, the dry season is becoming hotter and drier due to climate change, which leaves the state more vulnerable to brush fires and wildfires.’
It has prompted concern the disaster could worsen America’s insurance crisis which has already seen premiums plummet and firms refuse to cover homes in states at most risk of extreme weather.
Today, the man in charge of Maui’s Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday he does not regret not activating warning sirens as the fatal wildfire swept across the island.
Search operations continue in Lahaina, as hope fades that any survivors will be found – though some 1,300 people remain missing
Chief Herman Andaya said he opted to send out alerts via mobile devices, radio waves, television and the county’s opt-in resident alert system – but not via siren.
Despite the claim the warning sirens could have saved hundreds of people who instead burned in the deadly fire, Andaya argued the sirens are generally used for tsunami warnings and Hawaiians are trained to seek higher ground when they go off, which in this case would have led them toward the blazing inferno.
‘I should also note that there are no sirens mauka, or on the mountainside, where the fire was spreading down. So even if we sounded the siren, we would not have saved those people out there on the mountainside.’
