Number of Missing Individuals in Maui Wildfire Reduced to 385, Contrary to Governor’s Estimate of Under 100

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The official tally of individuals reported missing in the wake of the Maui wildfire stood at 385 as of Friday, showing minimal change from the previous week’s figure.

A joint statement issued by the Maui Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation noted that 245 people originally included in last week’s publicly disclosed list of 388 missing individuals have since been located and consequently removed from the list. However, an almost equivalent number of new names were appended to the list, offsetting the reduction.

This latest number diverges significantly from Governor Josh Green’s prediction made just a day prior. He had publicly stated that he anticipated the list of missing persons would shrink to fewer than 100.

“We believed the numbers had been reduced to double digits, so we were grateful,” Governor Green communicated through a video uploaded to his account on platform X, previously known as Twitter.

The fire, which devastated the town of Lahaina within mere hours on August 8, has been declared the deadliest wildfire in the United States in over 100 years, with a minimum of 115 confirmed deaths. To date, 50 of these names have been made public, five have been identified but not publicly disclosed due to inability to contact next of kin, and the remainder are yet to be identified.

Initially, there were over 1,000 individuals deemed unaccounted for, as reported by families, friends, or associates. Authorities later refined this list to contain 388 names, deemed credibly missing, and released this data to the public last week.

Maui Police Chief John Pelletier announced on Friday that new names were added to the missing persons list, sourced from the Red Cross, various shelters, and parties interested enough to reach out to the FBI.

Pelletier also strongly encouraged family members of the missing to provide their DNA samples to aid in the identification process. “For those who are aware that a family member is among the missing, providing a DNA sample is crucial,” Police Chief John Pelletier conveyed in a video published on Instagram.

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Kelleher reported from Lahaina, Hawaii.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Maui Wildfire Missing Persons

More about Maui Wildfire Missing Persons

• Official Statement from Maui Police Department and FBI
• Governor Josh Green’s Prediction Video on Platform X
• Publicly Released Names of Deceased Victims
• Red Cross Updates on Maui Wildfire
• Maui Police Chief John Pelletier’s Instagram Video on DNA Sample Submission
• Historical Context of U.S. Wildfires
• Lahaina Town Information and Impact Assessment
• Kelleher’s Reporting Profile