Two weeks after the deadly fires that ravaged the island of Maui, Hawaiian authorities said Tuesday they were still searching for 1,100 people missing, according to a list compiled by the FBI.
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These fires, the deadliest in the United States in a century, have killed at least 115 people, according to the latest preliminary report.
But this tragedy could be far more serious. As the fire almost leveled the tourist town of Lahaina, home to 12,000 people, thousands of missing persons are appearing on various lists circulating on social media or maintained by various agencies – police, Red Cross, emergency shelters, etc.
The FBI is now working to standardize this data.
“We’re comparing all lists to determine who is really still missing,” Special Agent Steven Merrill announced to the press. According to the investigation, the federal police are currently listing “1100” missing people, as he said.
That number is “probably going to increase,” he added, as the FBI is “still in the process of gathering additional data.”
On Monday evening, the mayor of Maui reported only 850 missing people.
The FBI has set up a dedicated phone number (808-566-4300) and is encouraging families of the missing to contact them.
“We really need the public’s help,” stressed Mr. Merrill, explaining that some missing persons are sometimes identified by their first names only on lists circulating online.
In such cases, additional information, such as a last name or date of birth, can greatly help federal police in locating the person or confirming their disappearance.
Authorities are doing their best to refine the data and hope to release a “verified list” of missing persons in the coming days, Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said.
The FBI also employs agents to collect DNA samples from families of missing persons who are unable to travel to Maui, no matter where they are in the world. Because the identification of the defaced bodies found in the ashes of Lahaina is tedious.
Of the 115 identified victims, only 27 have been identified so far.
Obtaining DNA from the family of the missing is “a crucial step in identifying” the victims, recalled Julie French, vice president of ANDE, the company in charge of these operations.
“Nearly three-quarters of the remains tested for DNA to date have returned searchable results,” she said. But without family DNA to compare that data to, the process is futile.
Only 104 DNA samples have been collected so far, and authorities are looking to allay any reservations.
“DNA profiles are not held by the FBI or local police,” Maui County District Attorney Andrew Martin said. “The only purpose they are being used is to help identify missing persons.”