HONOLULU (KHON2) — About 25% of the hot zone in Lahaina has already been searched for human remains. Recently, that number and the amount of area search is going to start to speed up considerably.
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With 25 cadaver dogs now on scene along with 90 search personnel, county officials are hoping to search as much as 85 to 90 perfect of the area by this weekend.
Other highlights from the press conference today include the governor saying they’ve now acquired more than 400 hotel room and more than 1200 Airbnb’s that can be used to house people that have been displaced.
And back to the search for remains police chief, Pelletier said, although they are covering more ground quicker, they are being very diligent and making sure to be respectful with every step taken inside the impact zone.
“It’s not just ash on your clothing when you take it off. It’s our loved ones,” said Chief Pelletier. “That’s the reverence. That’s why we can’t have you walking down, and we had to arrest somebody for trespassing so if we want to keep doing this and slowing it down, keep doing that.”
One more key point the governor wanted to stress was if you have any family members who are missing or unaccounted for, please report to the family assistance center to provide both critical information, and a DNA swab to help with positive identifications.
Maui humane society also said in a recent update on their efforts to reunite and recover lost pets, they estimate about 3,000 animals are lost.
As of today, they have 367 reports of missing pets.
They’ve also gotten reports of live animals in places around the burned areas in West Maui.
“So we’ve set up dozens of feeding stations with food and water to draw the animals out that may be scared or in hiding, so they can be trapped efficiently and brought back to the shelter,” said Lisa Labrecque, Maui Humane Society CEO.
The Maui Humane Society says all the animals they’ve had at its shelter prior to the fire are now in the care of rescue partners and foster homes.
