Herman Andaya Under Growing Pressure As He Defends Not Sounding Maui Alarm

Pressure is growing over Hawaiian official Herman Andaya, the administrator at Maui Emergency Management Agency who decided to not sound warning sirens when a devastating wildfire was ravaging the town of Lahaina last week.

Maui, one of Hawaii's largest islands, was ravaged by wind-whipped wildfires on August 8 which forced the evacuation of thousands and killed an estimated 111 people, as per the latest estimates. Lahaina, Hawaii's vibrant former royal capital, was the most affected area, with its homes, businesses and land now left in charred ruins by the fire.

Around 1,000 people are still considered to be missing in Maui as of Thursday, but authorities warned that many might not be found alive by searchers looking through the rubble left by the fire.

On the day of the devastating disaster, Andaya decided not to sound warning sirens for residents. His decision has since come under scrutiny, with many criticizing the administrator for his lack of action.

Andaya, a graduate of the University of Hawaii, has been the head of the Maui Emergency Management Agency since 2017. Between 2011 and 2017, he worked as chief of staff for the office of the mayor in the county of Maui, according to his LinkedIn, and, before that, he was special assistant to the chancellor at the University of Hawaii Maui College.

Pressure on the Maui administrator has grown after it was revealed he was not even on the island on the day of the fire, with Andaya revealing during a press conference on Wednesday that he was in Oahu—another island in the state—where he was attending a three-day FEMA disaster preparedness seminar, as reported by Hawaii News Now.

During the press event on Wednesday, the official was confronted with a question from a reporter who mentioned survivors saying their neighbors and loved ones could have been saved by the sirens.

Andaya defended his controversial decision to not activate them, telling journalists he does not regret it and adding that they "would not have saved those people."

"The public is trained to seek higher ground in the event that the siren is sounded," Andaya said at a news conference, explaining that the sirens, located mostly on the coastline, are mainly used to alert the population of tsunamis.

"Had we sounded the siren that night, we were afraid that people would have gone mauka," Andaya continued. "Mauka" is a common Hawaiian phrase that means "on the mountainside of the road." He added: "And if that's the case, then they would have gone into the fire."

Hawaii's Governor Josh Green defended Andaya during the press conference, saying he would have thought of a tsunami hearing the sirens blasting. Green has said that an investigation and review of the state's response to the emergency is ongoing.

Instead of activating the sirens, Andaya decided to send out alerts via mobile devices, radio, television, and the county's opt-in resident alert system.

"I should also note that there are no sirens mauka, or on the mountainside, where the fire was spreading down. So even if we sounded the siren, we would not have saved those people out there on the mountainside," he said.

Andaya said that "counties in the state of Hawaii will tell you that sirens have not been used for brushfires," despite the fact Maui County's website mentions an all-hazard statewide outdoor warning siren system that can be used for wildfires too.

"The all-hazard siren system can be used for a variety of both natural and human-caused events; including tsunamis, hurricanes, dam breaches, flooding, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, terrorist threats, hazardous material incidents, and more," the website reads.

While the cause of the wildfire has not yet been determined, research has found that climate change increases the frequency and severity of such natural disasters as wildfires.

Newsweek contacted Maui Emergency Management Agency for comment by email on Thursday.