Maui's wildfires have killed at least 53 people and turned the resort town of Lahaina into smoldering ruins that will take many years and billions of dollars to rebuild, Hawaiian officials said.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said the inferno that reduced much of Lahaina to smoldering ruins was the worst natural disaster in the state's history, making thousands of people homeless and leveling as many as 1,000 buildings.
"It's going to take many years to rebuild Lahaina," Green said told a news conference on Thursday, as officials began to map out a plan to shelter the newly displaced in hotels and tourist rental properties.