Maui Wildfire Blamed on 'Colonial Greed'

Former state Representative and Hawaiian Indigenous leader Kaniela Ing on Wednesday blamed the raging Hawaii wildfires on "colonial greed."

The wildfires, which have spread across several islands because of winds from Hurricane Dora, have hit Maui particularly hard, while Lahaina also has been inundated. It is believed that the fires were caused by a mix of hot and dry conditions and exacerbated by the wind. Thousands of people in Maui were forced to evacuate Wednesday morning, including some who jumped into the ocean to flee the flames.

"As a Kānaka Maoli, stemming from seven generations here on Maui. This is heartbreaking to watch. Colonial greed is burning down our home. And it's US politicians and polluters to blame. #ClimateEmergency," Ing posted on X, formerly Twitter.

The Hawaiian Kingdom was a sovereign state formed in 1795. It was annexed by the U.S. in 1898, made a territory in 1900 and became a state on August 21, 1959. Kānaka Maoli are Indigenous Hawaiians.

Ing, who was a member of the Hawaii House of Representatives for the 11th District representing south Maui from November 2012 to November 2018, included a video with several clips of raging wildfires and billowing black smoke in his post.

"My island is on fire. My heart is breaking at the utter devastation these wildfires are causing my friends, family and community," Ing, who also is the Green New Deal Network national director, told Newsweek in a statement. "I've been texting friends all day to see if they're OK. I can't stop thinking about how my mom was just about to sign a lease for an apartment in Lahaina."

Ing continued: "The extreme wildfires in Lahaina, in this summer of climate disasters, are yet more proof that we are in a climate emergency and this crisis is killing us. Our leaders in D.C. passed starting measures to tackle climate change, but we need legislation that is as bold and urgent as the scale of the wildfires choking Hawaii and Canada, the heat waves suffocating Texas and the extreme flooding drowning Europe.

"How many more lives lost or families displaced in communities like mine is President Biden willing to tolerate before he declares a climate emergency and activates politicians to take further climate action?" Ing asked.

In a later post, Ing urged reporters to stop characterizing Lahaina as a "tourist hotspot," adding that it was the original capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

"Walking Front Street end-to-end is like a Disneyland ride through the colonial timeline of capitalism in Hawaii: starting from royalty, to whaling, sandalwood, sugar and pineapple, tourism, and luxury goods," Ing posted. "The fire is a tragic symbol of this trajectory's terminal point."

This year, wildfires have charred Canada and Europe as well as the Southwest U.S., where an 80,000-acre wildfire spread across California and Nevada in early August. Another near Phoenix, Arizona, in June consumed nearly 2,000 acres and caused the evacuation of more than 1,000 residents.

Climate experts have told Newsweek that climate change is anticipated to make weather events like hurricanes or wildfires more severe through increased ocean temperatures, heat waves and/or drought.

"We can expect the kinds of conditions experiencing now to continue to intensify in the future as global warming continues," Noah Diffenbaugh, a professor at Stanford's Doerr School of Sustainability, previously told Newsweek.

Hurricane Dora was passing Hawaii at a safe distance but caused strong wind gusts up to 60 mph. The wind spurred the fires and also contributed to power outages, which grounded firefighting helicopters.

As of Wednesday morning, there were three fires burning on Maui, and "none of them are contained," according to Mahina Martin, chief of communications and public affairs for the island of Maui.

"The magnitude of the fires and the fast-moving swiftness of the fires have caused evacuations in all three areas throughout yesterday and overnight," Martin told Newsweek.

Update 08/10/2023, 10:02 a.m. ET: This story was updated to include additional comments from Kaniela Ing.