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Maui Mayor Richard Bissen has accepted the resignation of this Hawaii County Emergency Management Agency Administrator, Herman Andaya.
Andaya resigned citing health reasons a week after the worst wildfires in U.S. history ravaged the Hawaiian island. He has been harshly criticized for not activating disaster sirens during the fire response.
“Given the severity of the crisis we are facing, my team and I will be placing someone in this key position as soon as possible, and I expect to make that announcement shortly,” the Maui mayor said in a statement.
As of Wednesday, the death toll from the wildfires in Maui, Hawaii, United States, stood at 110.
#HermanAndaya, #Maui Emergency Management Agency Admin, has resigned citing health reasons amid scrutiny over #wildfire response. Andaya defended not sounding sirens during the deadly fire, opting for alerts via devices, radio, TV despite power outages.https://t.co/PWS9fe4ZIm
— Improve the News (@improvethenews)
August 19, 2023
Andaya previously said the alarms were not sounded because “we feared people had gone north.” “In that case, they would have gone toward the fire.”
Survivors have been furious about this decision, along with other perceived mistakes before, during and after the disaster. They argue that if the siren system had been activated, more lives would have been saved.
On Maui, it’s not hard to spot one of the 80 green siren towers used to alert residents in dangerous situations, which are tested monthly. This powerful emergency warning siren system remained silent during the deadly wildfires. It was created after the 1946 tsunami that killed more than 150 people on the Big Island.
