Hawaii wildfires burn homes and force evacuations

Wildfires in Hawaii fanned by strong winds burned multiple structures, forced evacuations and caused power outages in several communities late Tuesday as firefighters struggled to reach some areas that were cut off by downed trees and power lines.
The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora, which was passing to the south of the island chain at a safe distance of 805 kilometers, was partly to blame for gusts above 97 kph that knocked out power as night fell, rattled homes and grounded firefighting helicopters.
Acting Governor Sylvia Luke issued an emergency proclamation on behalf of Gov. Josh Green, who is traveling, and activated the Hawaii National Guard.
Fire crews on Maui were battling multiple blazes concentrated in two areas: the popular tourist destination of West Maui and an inland, mountainous region. It wasn’t immediately known how many buildings had burned, County of Maui spokesperson Mahina Martin said in a phone interview late Tuesday.
Because of the wind gusts, helicopters weren’t able to dump water on the fires from the sky – or gauge more precise fire sizes – and firefighters were encountering roads blocked by downed trees and power lines as they worked the inland fires, Martin said.