Hawaii

Lahaina neighborhood evacuated due to new brush fire on Maui; twister also spotted

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A brush fire on Saturday prompted Maui authorities to evacuate residents from a neighborhood of Lahaina, just a few miles from the site recently ravaged by blazes.

An evacuation order had been issued for a residential area of Lahaina in the hills above Kaanapali resort hotels, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency said. The order was for an area around Anapuni Loop, the agency said in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

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Officials said forward progress of the brush fire had been halted and posed no active threat for the moment, but people were still told to stay clear of the area.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were affected by the evacuation order.

In another startling scene, a twister was captured on video just yards away from the smoke on Maui.

At least 115 people were killed and 2,000 structures destroyed when a wildfire tore through downtown Lahaina on Aug. 8. Minimal rains have pushed the area into drought.

That fire was exacerbated by strong trade winds fueled in part by Hurricane Dora, which passed by 500 miles (800 kilometers) to the south of Maui.

The National Weather Service forecast breezes of 3 to 8 mph (4.8 to 12 kph) for Lahaina on Saturday afternoon.

The horrific devastation from the Maui fires has made it the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history, and thousands have been displaced after losing their homes.
Copyright The Associated Press
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