Maui wildfire death toll surpasses 100; mobile morgue arrives to assist in identification of dead

Mobile morgue unit arrives in Hawaii to help identify victims of wildfires that killed 101; Gov. Green warns more bodies could be found; Red Cross shelters 575 evacuees; Biden pledges aid; locals collect stories of survivors.

A mobile morgue unit arrived on August 15 to help Hawaii officials working painstakingly to identify the remains of people killed in wildfires that ravaged Maui, as the death rose above 100 and teams intensified the search for more dead in neighborhoods reduced to ash.

Governor Josh Green announced the confirmed death toll had risen from 99 to 101 in an afternoon video address, saying, “We are heartsick that we’ve had such loss.”

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services deployed a team of coroners, pathologists and technicians along with exam tables, X-ray units and other equipment to identify victims and process remains, said Jonathan Greene, the agency’s deputy assistant secretary for response.

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“It’s going to be a very, very difficult mission,” Mr. Greene said. “And patience will be incredibly important because of the number of victims.”

A week after a blaze tore through historic Lahaina, many survivors started moving into hundreds of hotel rooms set aside for displaced locals, while donations of food, ice, water and other essentials poured in.

Crews using cadaver dogs have scoured about 32% of the area, the County of Maui said in a statement Tuesday. The Governor asked for patience as authorities became overwhelmed with requests to visit the burn area.