"The bodies are shattered"... Difficulty in identifying victims in Hawaii disaster

Nearly 100 Dead... Only a Few Identified
"Victims Were Exposed to Fire Hot Enough to Melt Metal"

The death toll from the wildfire on Maui Island, Hawaii, has approached 100. However, more fatalities are expected, and among the recovered bodies, only a very small number have been positively identified.

According to Maui County authorities on the 14th (local time), as of 9 p.m. the previous day, the number of fire-related deaths was counted at 96. This is an increase of 3 from the 93 reported at 2:30 p.m. the same day, within just six hours.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green told CBS, "Search teams may find 10 to 20 bodies per day, so it could take more than ten days to determine the total number of deaths." He also added, "The number of people reported missing is about 1,300."

Moreover, most of the bodies identified so far have been severely burned, making identification difficult. At a press conference on the 12th, Maui County authorities stated, "As of that afternoon, out of 89 confirmed deaths, only 2 had been positively identified."

Maui Police Chief John Pelletier explained, "The remains found were exposed to fires hot enough to melt metal," adding, "The remains break apart when we recover them." Federal Representative Jill Tokuda (Democratic Party), whose district includes Maui, said, "The heat, intensity, and speed of the fire literally stopped everything," and "This will make identifying and notifying the deceased extremely difficult."

Buildings engulfed in flames in a large fire on Maui Island, Hawaii, USA
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

The severe damage to the bodies has also slowed the search efforts. Since the 11th, search and rescue teams from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and cadaver dogs have been deployed to the main affected areas to begin searching inside structures, but as of the afternoon of the 12th, only about 3% of the affected areas had been searched.

In particular, local mobile networks were mostly damaged by the wildfire, making it even harder to confirm missing persons who have no ties to the island. On the 14th, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reported that communications were down at 20 out of 21 cell sites in the West Maui area.

Chief Pelletier urged families of missing persons, "Rapid DNA testing is necessary for identification," and requested that they provide DNA samples at the family support centers operated by the authorities.

Meanwhile, an analysis has emerged estimating that the economic cost of the wildfire could reach up to $7.5 billion (approximately 10 trillion KRW), with a severe local economic downturn expected.

According to a report by U.S. CNN on the 14th, financial information firm Moody's Analytics estimated the initial economic impact of the wildfire to be between $3 billion (about 4 trillion KRW) and $7.5 billion.

Economists Adam Kamins and Katie Need of Moody's Analytics stated in the report, "Considering that Maui Island's annual production scale is $10 billion (about 13.4 trillion KRW), the cost is astronomical."

The largest portion comes from direct property damage. More than 2,000 homes and buildings were destroyed by the wildfire. According to the report, the average home price in Maui exceeds $1 million (about 1.34 billion KRW), and when including damage to hotels and shops, the total amount is expected to be much higher.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.