Hawaii wildfire lesson: You are on your own

[bolus]

Wildfires wiped out the entire town of Lahaina on Maui last week. I'm over on the Big Island and we had some large fires but nothing that threatened a large community like there.

This is the fire that was 20 minutes from my house earlier in the day:



As we are starting to learn, the emergency response was essentially zero in Lahaina. We have the USA's most sophisticated (on paper) emergency warning system for tsunamis and other emergencies but it was no even turned on. Power and cell towers went down and evacuation notices were too late and too little. They even announced the fire was 100% contained before the town was hit and only announced evacuations after the whole town was burned.

Take a look at this fly over video from 2 days after the fire. What do you notice? or perhaps not see?

That's right, a complete lack of emergency services. I see one fire truck in that entire video. No search and rescue, no FEMA, no national guard.

They are finding people who were trapped in homes 4 days later because they were too elderly or disabled to get out. Here is what one of my fellow physicians who works over there said today:

]There are five key elements to surviving the first few days of a disaster. These include communication, which is the most vital to acquiring the other: food, water, shelter, and medical care. The local state government have failed on all fronts. Verizon and AT&T failed to provide emergency communication despite making millions from our population. Star link was limited. FEMA and the red cross are MIA. The homeless were eating candy bars in the first two days to feed themselves.
The lesson learned by this disaster, which really no one could have prepared for, is that in the first several days: YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN !. You're at the mercy of your resources and your community to help you. The good news is that we on Maui as a community are incredibly resourceful, caring, loving and supportive even when our government is anything but.

The day of the fire we had a car fire on my street. The hurricane winds were not as bad as maui (probably 30 mph in my area) but if that car fire caught my neighborhood would have went up because Im mostly in an ironwood forest.

I had emergency bags, 3 days emergency food, water, carry on sized suitcase, dog food, chainsaw in the truck in 5 minutes and ready to go when our main fire was still 20 min away.

I expect most here have the same mentality. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, the government isnt going to come save you what-so-ever. we just had our reminder that nothing has changed.

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[Nosferatu]

I'm curious how bad the insurance companies are going to screw everyone over.

 

[Alexx1401]

I expect most here have the same mentality. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, the government isnt going to come save you what-so-ever. we just had our reminder that nothing has changed.

The best part is the people who just got to see first hand how the people they voted for failed they will vote the same people back to "fix this". Then wonder why nothing gets better

 

[kmk1012]

This is nothing new unfortunately, we as taxpayers get to pay for the best of the best when it comes for govt preps but when needed they are MIA. We are truly on our own more than we think.

 

[Alexx1401]

I'm curious how bad the insurance companies are going to screw everyone over.

The same way its always done, hire more lawyers. Insurance Companies are just another business. Like all of them they are there for one reason, to make money. Unlike the gov. they can't print money. For all the money an insurance Co. pays out it has to make it back in fee's. Many love to hate on insurance but then want magic money to fall from the sky. Only way that happens is if you want to get rid of insurance Companies and have government take over and provide insurance. Many have tried that and the results are just as anyone knew they would be, a mess. Yet people will ask for it again.

 

[Knobgoblin]

The best part is the people who just got to see first hand how the people they voted for failed they will vote the same people back to "fix this". Then wonder why nothing gets better

All while holding hands and singing kum ba ya.

 

[bolus]

I'm curious how bad the insurance companies are going to screw everyone over.

When Kilauea destroyed ~700 homes in that last big eruption the only insurance that agreed to cover those homes refused to pay for at least a year while a class action lawsuit had to be brought against them.

I suspect it will be more of the same

Lloyd’s reverses denials, pays Kilauea insurance claims

After a tough year, Big Island residents Philip and Lunel Haysmer cried when they got the news.

www.staradvertiser.com

 

[kmk1012]

The same way its always done, hire more lawyers. Insurance Companies are just another business. Like all of them they are there for one reason, to make money. Unlike the gov. they can't print money. For all the money an insurance Co. pays out it has to make it back in fee's. Many love to hate on insurance but then want magic money to fall from the sky. Only way that happens is if you want to get rid of insurance Companies and have government take over and provide insurance. Many have tried that and the results are just as anyone knew they would be, a mess. Yet people will ask for it again.

Sadly

 

[Certaindeaf]

Godzirra

 

[Knobgoblin]

Godzirra

 

[dogface2000]

Wildfires wiped out the entire town of Lahaina on Maui last week. I'm over on the Big Island and we had some large fires but nothing that threatened a large community like there.

This is the fire that was 20 minutes from my house earlier in the day:
View attachment 1469999


As we are starting to learn, the emergency response was essentially zero in Lahaina. We have the USA's most sophisticated (on paper) emergency warning system for tsunamis and other emergencies but it was no even turned on. Power and cell towers went down and evacuation notices were too late and too little. They even announced the fire was 100% contained before the town was hit and only announced evacuations after the whole town was burned.

Take a look at this fly over video from 2 days after the fire. What do you notice? or perhaps not see?

That's right, a complete lack of emergency services. I see one fire truck in that entire video. No search and rescue, no FEMA, no national guard.

They are finding people who were trapped in homes 4 days later because they were too elderly or disabled to get out. Here is what one of my fellow physicians who works over there said today:



The day of the fire we had a car fire on my street. The hurricane winds were not as bad as maui (probably 30 mph in my area) but if that car fire caught my neighborhood would have went up because Im mostly in an ironwood forest.

I had emergency bags, 3 days emergency food, water, carry on sized suitcase, dog food, chainsaw in the truck in 5 minutes and ready to go when our main fire was still 20 min away.

I expect most here have the same mentality. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, the government isnt going to come save you what-so-ever. we just had our reminder that nothing has changed.

Thanks for sharing that brother.
I'm glad you and yours are well.

 

[GWS]

It just seems to me that everything is lackadaisical in Hawaii. I have friends on the big island who had contractors not show up because the surf was too good. Coffee growers lose part of their crops because they can't get people to pick the cherries (beans).
So, strangely, I'm not surprised at the half fast response of the emergency services there.

 

[solv3nt]

It just seems to me that everything is lackadaisical in Hawaii. I have friends on the big island who had contractors not show up because the surf was too good. Coffee growers lose part of their crops because they can't get people to pick the cherries (beans).
So, strangely, I'm not surprised at the half fast response of the emergency services there.

This is the same state that sent out a text alert to everybody that north Korea fired a nuke.

 

[dangerranger60]

The big danger in HI is that the town will be swallowed up under eminent domain. These family homes have been owned for generations , and at todays prices how many can afford to rebuild? So the city or state takes the property. The owners' families will only get the value of a destroyed vacant lot. DR

 

[Zingularity]

At least we sent $113 Billion to Ukraine.

 

[arakboss]

Wildfires wiped out the entire town of Lahaina on Maui last week. I'm over on the Big Island and we had some large fires but nothing that threatened a large community like there.

This is the fire that was 20 minutes from my house earlier in the day:
View attachment 1469999


As we are starting to learn, the emergency response was essentially zero in Lahaina. We have the USA's most sophisticated (on paper) emergency warning system for tsunamis and other emergencies but it was no even turned on. Power and cell towers went down and evacuation notices were too late and too little. They even announced the fire was 100% contained before the town was hit and only announced evacuations after the whole town was burned.

Take a look at this fly over video from 2 days after the fire. What do you notice? or perhaps not see?

That's right, a complete lack of emergency services. I see one fire truck in that entire video. No search and rescue, no FEMA, no national guard.

They are finding people who were trapped in homes 4 days later because they were too elderly or disabled to get out. Here is what one of my fellow physicians who works over there said today:



The day of the fire we had a car fire on my street. The hurricane winds were not as bad as maui (probably 30 mph in my area) but if that car fire caught my neighborhood would have went up because Im mostly in an ironwood forest.

I had emergency bags, 3 days emergency food, water, carry on sized suitcase, dog food, chainsaw in the truck in 5 minutes and ready to go when our main fire was still 20 min away.

I expect most here have the same mentality. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, the government isnt going to come save you what-so-ever. we just had our reminder that nothing has changed.

This is an important point, we are on our own. We should not count on government, neighbors or even family to be there for us, when things turn to poo. The self part of self-reliance should be respected when preparing for the worst. If some form of community reliance exist after a SHTF event, consider it a bonus. I would not expect it to be there.

 

[Yarome]

Yeah... pretty sad and a bit infuriating. We have several family friends there in Lahaina and Kaanapali. Fortunately, Kaanapali was largely untouched but I guess there are people that fled Lahaina camped all over the place there now with little to no services of any kind.

On the preparation front... it goes to show the absolute value of "to go" gear. I know a lot of folks have plenty of food stores and other SHTF gear, but that does very little good when you only have minutes to vacate the area... and all your stores go up in smoke.

 

[jkor]

what was burning? i don't See any forests. What started the fire?

 

[arakboss]

what was burning? i don't See any forests. What started the fire?

 

[Yarome]

what was burning? i don't See any forests. What started the fire?

They don't know yet. Possibly high winds that knocked down live power lines(?) There actually are... or rather where... very dense tracks of tropical forest covering many of the valleys in the area, but Lahaina itself is surrounded by crop land... and this time of year... mainly all dried tinder. The fire blew through the fields under high winds.