More than 100 people died in the bush fires on the Hawaiian island of Maui – now the district is taking legal action against the local energy supplier. Despite warnings, Hawaiian Electric did not turn off the power.
A good two weeks after the devastating fires broke out in the US state of Hawaii, which killed well over 100 people, the district of Maui filed a lawsuit against the Hawaiian Electric Company. In it, the authority accuses the largest energy supplier in the US state of negligence, among other things.
Weather Service warnings
The group failed to switch off the power grid, although the weather agency had previously issued a “red flag” warning for the Hawaiian island chain due to the high risk of fire, favored by drought, high temperatures and strong winds. The district also accuses the group of having poorly maintained and neglected power poles and other facilities.
Falling power cables set fire to dry vegetation, triggering the fire, the statement said. Had the utility heeded the Weather Service’s warnings and disabled the high-voltage power lines during the forecast high wind gusts, the destruction could have been avoided, the lawsuit said.
Maui County: $5.5 billion damage
The lawsuit relied on eyewitness accounts and video footage suggesting sparks from downed utility poles in the storm sparked the devastating bush and forest fires more than two weeks ago. The winds had been driven by a passing hurricane.
The Maui fires destroyed more than 2,200 buildings and caused estimated property damage of more than $5.5 billion, the lawsuit says. The district is seeking damages in an undisclosed amount. A spokesman for Hawaiian Electric did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Local residents are also suing Hawaiian Electric
The forest and bush fires broke out in several places on Maui and the neighboring island of Hawaii on August 8th. Measured by the number of victims, these were the most serious fires in the USA for more than 100 years. At least 115 people lost their lives in the almost completely destroyed city of Lahaina.
Many people are still missing. Helpers continue to search the burned-out buildings with corpse-sniffing dogs, and the number of victims is likely to increase. There have also been lawsuits filed against Hawaiian Electric by local residents.