Death toll in Hawaii wildfires reaches 80 as some Maui residents allowed to return to homes

Officials say the death toll from Hawaii's devastating wildfires has risen to 80, as some Maui residents were permitted Saturday to return to their charred neighborhoods to begin assessing damage.

“The recovery’s going to be extraordinarily complicated, but we do want people to get back to their homes and just do what they can to assess safely, because it’s pretty dangerous,” Gov. Josh Green told Hawaii News Now.

In a 9 p.m. Friday announcement, Maui County officials announced the new death toll, increasing it from the earlier tally of 67, while imposing a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew to assist rescue and recovery operations.

Maui County officials said they had made some progress fighting the three separate blazes that devastated the island. Containment of the Lahaina fire, which swept into the historic town increased to 85% late Friday, officials said.

Meanwhile resident continued to press for answers on why they did not get more warning about the rapidly spreading wildfires, which were fueled in part by strong winds. Maui’s warning sirens were not activated as the fires approached the heavily impacted town of Lahaina, emergency officials said. Three other alert systems were implemented, he Hawaii Emergency Services Administration said.