U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrived in Hawaii on Monday to meet with officials and survivors and survey damage from wildfires that devastated Maui.
The Bidens arrived at Kahului Airport and were greeted by Hawaii Governor Josh Green and members of Hawaii’s congressional delegation before boarding Marine One to survey the devastation caused by the fires.
The fires earlier this month left widespread destruction in the seaside town of Lahaina, killing at least 114 people. Governor Green has said the toll is expected to rise with efforts to find missing people still in progress.
Green told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that search teams had gone through 85% of the search zone, but that the remaining sections could take weeks. He said more than 1,000 people were still unaccounted for.
“Tomorrow the president arrives, and I’ll be making the case to make sure our recovery comes as quickly as possible,” Green said in a video posted late Sunday.
He also referenced concerns about rebuilding in Lahaina and respecting Native Hawaiian culture, saying that his administration “will listen to the voices of Lahaina to tell us how and when we rebuild.”
Some information for this story came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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