The aftermath of wildfires seen in the Hawaiian town of Lahaina which suffered extensive damage (Jae C Hong/AP)

Dry conditions, high winds and downed power cables all believed to have role in Hawaii wildfires

By Abi Jackson, PA
8:27 - September 04, 2023

Claims have been circulating on social media that the recent wildfires in Hawaii were the result of targeted “energy weapon” attacks.

One image, which claimed to show a “laser beam” directed from the sky striking the ground near the coast of Maui, went viral on TikTok before being shared by multiple Twitter users.

Another video claimed to show an “explosion” in Maui following a laser strike before the fires took hold.

Evaluation: False

There is no evidence supporting these claims. The image claiming to show a laser beam striking a Maui hilltop is actually from a 2018 SpaceX launch in California, while the video claiming to show a laser-triggered explosion in Maui is a mirrored copy of footage that went viral on TikTok in May 2023.

The facts

The photo in the first claim can be seen in reports from long before the Hawaii wildfires, and was also shared in 2018 in a post on the official SpaceX Instagram account. It shows a 2018 SpaceX launch in California, and also appears on SpaceX’s official Flickr album with an upload date of May 23 2018.

The video claiming to show a laser-triggered explosion in Maui was taken months before the Hawaii fires broke out on August 8 and shows a blown transformer in Chile. Chilevision, the Chilean TV network, ran a report on the viral video on May 30, confirming the origins.

What really happened? 

Described as the worst wildfires in Hawaii’s history, blazes caused widespread devastation across the island of Maui. The historic town of Lahaina was almost entirely destroyed, with the death toll reaching at least 115.

Investigations are ongoing as to exactly how the fires started and spread so extensively but experts already believe a number of factors played a role.

High winds from Hurricane Dora, combined with Maui’s mountainous topography and very dry conditions following droughts on the island, are thought to have spread the flames.

The aftermath of wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii dated August 22 2023
Burnt out buildings in Lahaina, looking towards the coast (Jae C Hong/AP)

Crystal Kolden, a pyrogeographer and associate professor at the University of California, told NBC News: “Our most disastrous wildfires in US history have been associated with extremely strong wind events.”

It was reported in the Guardian that exposed power cables and obsolete wood poles may have sparked fires. The claims suggest that when power lines came down in the high winds, the exposed cables sparked upon contact with the dry ground.

The Hawaiian Electric Company is facing criticism for the condition of its poles and cables and for not shutting down the power when the winds took hold. Many of the wooden poles were reportedly leaning and near the end of their projected lifespan and did not meet a 2002 national standard that key components be able to withstand 105mph winds. Investigations are ongoing but on August 24 Maui County sued the power company.

Links

Photo circulated on social media claiming to show laser beam striking Maui hills (archived)

Video shared on Twitter claiming to show explosion following laser attack in Maui before the fires (archived)

Original ‘explosion’ video from Chile transformer explosion (archived post and video)

Report from 2019 showing the 2018 SpaceX launch image (archived)

May 23 2018 Instagram post from Space X launch with light beam (archived)

Same image on SpaceX’s official Flickr album with an upload date of May 23, 2018 (archived)

Chilean news report (archived)

NBC News article on effect of high winds (archived)

Report on exposed power lines being potential cause of fire starting (archived)

Report on criticism faced by Hawaiian Electric Company (archived)

Report on Maui County suing Hawaiian Electric (archived)

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