Identification of casualties in Maui wildfire a challenge – consul

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 13) — Authorities have yet to release a clear breakdown of casualties in the Maui, Hawaii wildfires as flames in major areas are still not fully contained, according to the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu.

“They come up with these figures, regarding fatalities, those still missing, those evacuated out of the island of Maui, wala silang [they have no] breakdown according to ethnicity or citizenship,” Philippine Consul General in Honolulu Emil Fernandez told CNN Philippines’ Newsroom Weekend on Sunday.

“These are information that are quite general,” Fernandez said.Due to the circumstances, Philippine authorities have yet to provide the number of affected Filipinos in Maui.But according to the consul, the consulate in Honolulu has so far received some 30 calls from Filipinos seeking help to locate their loved ones.“They come up with these figures, regarding fatalities, those still missing, those evacuated out of the island of Maui, wala silang [they have no] breakdown according to ethnicity or citizenship,” Philippine Consul General in Honolulu Emil Fernandez told CNN Philippines’ Newsroom Weekend on Sunday.“These are information that are quite general,” Fernandez explained.

The latest death toll from the fires is at 93, which Maui authorities expect to further increase.

READ: Crews work to identify many of the 93 victims found so far in Maui wildfires, now the deadliest US fire in over a century

“Once bodies are found, it’ll take some time to identify the person and [that are] likely dental remains. That’s one challenge,” Fernandez explained.

“Either we refer them to organizations such as the US Red Cross na meron nang sistema to locate individuals who may be missing,” Fernandez said. “We obtain kanilang pangalan, full details, addresses para tulungan din sila hanapin.”[Translation: Either we refer them to organizations such as the US Red Cross that already has a system to locate individuals who may be missing. We obtain their names, full details, addresses to help them find them as well.]Filipinos make up around 18% or 27,000 of the 155,000 inhabitants of the island, according to Fernandez.The director of the Maui Filipino Chamber of Commerce earlier stated that Filipinos are the second largest ethnic group in Maui.