Lahaina 'Wiped Off the Map' by Maui Wildfire, Video Shows

The historic town and popular tourist resort of Lahaina, on the Hawaiian island of Maui, has been wiped off the map by a devastating wildfire that has destroyed buildings, caused mass evacuations and led to the deaths of at least 36 people.

Footage of the aftermath of the fire taken from a circling helicopter shows row after row of wrecked homes and buildings, with the scorched earth still smoking from the blaze, which officials have said remains active.

Commenting on the video, weather watcher Nahel Belgherze wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Wednesday evening, in a post viewed over 2.8 million times: "It is far from hyperbole to say that Lahaina has been wiped off the map."

Newsweek approached the office of the Mayor of Maui County Richard Bissen via email for comment on Thursday.

An aerial view of Lahaina before and after the fire, taken by a satellite, shows countless houses in the coastal town reduced to rubble and streets bereft of greenery.

Fire crews are battling three large bush fires on the island of Maui, concentrated in the western region around Lahaina and an inland, mountainous region. Meteorologists have said strong winds from Hurricane Dora were likely helping spread the fires.

County of Maui officials said in an update on Wednesday afternoon that nearly a hundred firefighters had been working around the clock to battle the blazes. The fires had impacted around 271 structures, with "widespread damage" to Lahaina and the surrounding area. Power, phone lines and water supplies have also been affected.

U.S. President Joe Biden expressed his deepest condolences to the families of those who had died in a statement on Wednesday. He added that he was "grateful to the brave firefighters and first responders who continue to run toward danger, putting themselves in harm's way to save lives."

County officials said the fatalities had been discovered during firefighting efforts in Lahaina.

As the fires spread across the island on Tuesday, some jumped into the waters off Lahaina to escape the flames before being rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard. Tourists have been urged to leave the island owing to limited emergency resources.

In another video, taken from the town's high street that runs along the coast, burnt-out cars and debris can be seen littering the road while ashen trees and buildings smoulder in the background. As the camera pans around, more buildings reduced to rubble can be seen.

"Everything is gone," one user reacted to the clip on X.

"The fire certainly has caused what will ultimately be described as billions of dollars of damage to our dear communities on Maui," Hawaii Governor Josh Green told Hawaii News Now on Wednesday evening. He has cut short his summer travels to return to his state.

The blazes in Hawaii come amid a spate of heat wave-induced wildfires that have spread across the southwest United States, as well as Europe and Canada. Early in August, an 80,000-acre wildfire spread across California and Nevada—and in late June, a wildfire near Phoenix took hold of nearly 2,000 acres and led to the evacuation of over 1,000 residents.

Several states in the southwest have been regularly experiencing temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Experts have said that climate change was contributing to the hot, dry conditions that made wildfires more likely.