Hawaii authorities “would not have saved” the people who died in the recent wildfires on Maui by activating the island’s warning sirens—which are usually reserved for tsunami warnings that require residents to seek higher ground rather than fleeing toward the ocean. Maui Emergency Management Agency Chief Herman Andaya has come under criticism for his decision to forego the sirens, though he hit back at those critics during a press conference Wednesday: “Had we sounded the siren that night, we’re afraid that people would have gotten mauka [up the nearby mountains] and if that was the case, then they would have gone into the fire.” Andaya did, however, alert residents via their mobile devices, as well as on radio and television. The death toll from the blaze was raised to a stunning 110 Wednesday.
