Hawaii Fire Death Toll Rises to 80 as Experts Estimate $1.3 Billion Damage to Residential Property

Experts estimate there were over 3,000 homes destroyed by the Maui wildfires on the island so far

The death toll on Maui, Hawaii, continues to rise with preliminary estimates of damages of the fire set at over $1 billion, as firefighters in the state continue to battle wildfires.

Maui County reported that the number of fatalities in Lahaina rose to 80 as of 9 p.m. local time on Friday, up from 67 deaths reported earlier that day. Firefighters are continuing to fight blazes and extinguish flare-ups in Lahaina, upcountry Maui and near Pulehu and Kihei, the county said in its latest press release.

Several large wildfires were first reported on the island on Tuesday, with the historic town of Lahaina — a residential and tourist destination that dates back to the 1700s — having received the bulk of the damage from the fires. That area has since been blockaded by police due to hazards including toxic particles from the burnt down buildings, according to Maui County.

Over 1,400 people have evacuated Lahaina and taken up residence at emergency evacuation shelters at War Memorial Gymnasium and other shelters across the island. President Joe Biden approved the state of Hawaii’s disaster declaration, allowing additional federal funding to become available for people affected throughout the area on Thursday.

Related: Everything to Know About the 2023 Hawaii Wildfires, Including Ways to Help the Victims

The total cost of damages from the Maui wildfires is estimated at $1.3 billion, according to a preliminary estimate by CoreLogic, which publishes reports on property data. CoreLogic said the estimate is based on a total of 3,088 residential properties that have burned down in Lahaina, Pulehu and Pukalani.

The bulk of reconstruction costs would be in Lahaina, where an estimated 2,808 residential properties would cost over $1.2 billion to reconstruct.

The costs calculated by CoreLogic are close to Hawaii’s Gov. Josh Green’s estimation. He previously noted that the fires have already caused "billions of dollars in damage and could exacerbate the state’s existing housing shortage," per The Washington Post.

Related: Estimated 1K People Missing in Hawaii amid Wildfires: It Was ‘Impossible’ to Warn Them

"We are seeing loss of life," Gov. Green said at a Thursday news conference, also noting that the fires were the "greatest emergency we've seen in decades."

During the press conference, reporters inquired about the warning system put in place, to which Maui Police Chief Pelletier responded by stressing that "nobody saw this coming, period."

Gov. Green also noted that the tragedy was especially difficult to anticipate because it "came in the night with high winds," adding that the state is short on firefighting resources and personnel.

Hawaii general attorney Anne Lopez announced on Friday that her office will be conducting a review of “critical decision-making and standing policies” leading up to, during and after the wildfires.

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“The whole town was on fire,” one Maui resident, Keao Shaw, 39, recalled of the tragedy to PEOPLE. “It was just an inferno, black smoke everywhere.”

"The fire was everywhere. It was up in the hills, it was down in the buildings, and [it was in] all the houses. It's all the way down to the beach," he said.  "People were running for their lives."

"Our whole town is gone. Our jobs are gone. Our house is gone," another Maui resident, Amanda Bratton, told PEOPLE of the destruction. "Our cars are gone and our whole community is just, I mean, it's the entire town. So it's like I've never seen anything this tragic since 9-11. It's like, what do you do when you weren't expecting your entire town, all the buildings and businesses and houses, to just be wiped out?"

Maui isn’t the only island in Hawaii dealing with brush fires. County officials on Hawaii’s Big Island also announced on Tuesday that they were monitoring active brush fires in the Kohala area, located on the north side of the island, and announced a mandatory evacuation for the area. However, as of late Wednesday, the fire was controlled and residents were allowed to return, per local news Big Island Now.

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