Just two Hawaii fire victims identified because bodies are so badly burned they 'fall apart' in rescuers' hands
14 August 2023, 09:26 | Updated: 14 August 2023, 09:29
Just two of the 93 confirmed deaths in the Hawaii wildfires have been identified because bodies have been burned so badly they fall apart.
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Officials have called for relatives to come forward and provide DNA to help them find out who has fallen victim to the devastating flames, which devastated the popular tourist hotspot of Lahaina on the island of Maui last week.
The paradise was ravaged by fires that were fanned by hurricane winds, forcing residents and tourists to flee to shelters with some forced to jump into the ocean to escape the inferno.
Authorities put the death toll at 93, but there are still some 1,300 thought to be missing in one unofficial count.
Read more: Hawaii wildfires become deadliest in US history as governor warns fatalities will increase
Relatives of the missing have been told to come forward to help identify the dead.
"The remains we're finding are from a fire that melted metal," Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said.
"When we pick up the remains … they fall apart."
He added: "We need you to do the DNA test. We need to identify your loved ones."
Emergency workers are effectively having to tread over burned remains as they comb through the rubble.
They mark areas that need to be searched with an "X" and leave the initial "HR" when human remains are found.
Dead bodies were still "floating on the seawall", one resident said.
Just 3% of the destroyed historic town, which had a population of 13,000, has been surveyed.
More than 2,000 buildings were destroyed as it was warned the rebuild will take years.
The damage is estimated at about $6bn.
Josh Green, the governor of Hawaii, said more "bones and remains" will be found as the recovery operation continues.
"It's going to take many years to rebuild Lahaina. It does appear like a bomb went off."
Joe Biden is looking into visiting the destroyed area.
Attention has now turned to the response, with state records showing warning sirens in the area did not go off and emergency communications mostly went to phones and broadcasters while the power was cut off during the blaze.
