(NewsNation) — The Maui City Council is expected to hold a public hearing next week amid wildfires that have demolished a historic town and killed at least 110 people, according to the chair of the city council.
Council Chair Alice Lee told NewsNation that hearing directly from the public is a top priority, one made more difficult because of the damage to communication infrastructure in Maui.
“What we’re hoping is that we can engage with the community — somehow — because it’s still not easy with communication,” Lee said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) opened its first disaster recovery center on Maui, “an important first step” toward helping residents get information about assistance, FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said.
While some have criticized the response of President Joe Biden’s administration, Lee said he’s done a “fantastic” job.
“He’s (Biden) actually been doing a lot of the coordination because we have a number of federal agencies here on Maui,” she said. “We have a number of state agencies, as well as our county agencies, which require a tremendous amount of coordination. And so we’ve been receiving a lot of help.”
Biden is expected to visit Hawaii on Aug. 21.
Lee said she realizes Maui residents still don’t feel completely assured.
“I know that our residents are still very frustrated because their needs are right now,” she said. “And the trouble is, this fire actually is not totally out; it’s not totally extinguished.”
Questions about why Hawaii’s vast system of outdoor alert sirens failed are sure to come up at the hearing next week. The alert system, implemented after a 1946 tsunami that killed more than 150 people, was silent as the wildfire forced people from their homes to seek shelter elsewhere.
Lee said Democratic Hawaii Gov. Josh Green has ordered Attorney General Anne Lopez to investigate the alert system.
“In terms of finding out the facts about the siren system, if we can improve it in any way, we’re going to do that in the coming months. But for now, we really have to focus on survival,” Lee said.
As for how people can help, Lee said monetary donations are best.
“Money is much more practical than just simply donations that we’re not even sure that people need,” she said. “What’s happening now is people are transitioning out of our emergency shelters and moving into temporary quarters for the next eight, nine months or so.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.