Hawaii wildfire may have taken 2700 structures for near $6bn: governor

Wildfire on the Hawaiian island of Maui may have destroyed or damaged over 2700 structures with a value approaching $6 billion, Hawaii governor Josh Green told a briefing.

The death toll late Sunday had hit 96, up from 55 late last week. Governor Green warned the tally “will continue to rise” as search and rescue efforts approach more and more of the devastated areas.

Green put the tally of destroyed or damaged structures at 2200 in west Maui, understood to be the city of Lahaina, of which 86% were said to be residential. Another 544 structures were hit in the central Maui region of Kula, of which 96% were said to be residential.

“The losses approach $6 billion in estimate,” Green told the briefing late on Sunday, August 13, without citing further source to the estimate.

A consensus was apparent already late last week that damages would run into the billions.

“Based on the extent of damage, it is likely that total economic losses will reach into the billions,” analysts at global re/insurance broker Aon said in their weekly cat event report.

“Significant disruption to tourism” could fuel further economic and insured losses “for the foreseeable future.”

Analysts at Wells Fargo, also working from the state of play late last week, had echoed the ‘billion-plus’ diagnosis, but offered confidence that “losses could be absorbed in quarterly cat loads” without being a loss for reinsurers.

Global reinsurance brokerage Guy Carpenter had suggested that the wildfire that tore through Lahaina had put some 2700 structures worth some $2.8 billion in harm's way. Guy Carpenter also noted 700 structures in harm's way in Kula with a potential exposure value of approximately $500 million.

State Farm holds the highest market share in Hawaii for multiperil homeowners contracts, data from insurance rating agency AM Best indicates.

State Farm has a 35.2% market share, followed by Tokio Marin with 12.4%, Allstate with 8.0%, USAA Group with 7.1% and Liberty Mutual with 6.1%.

The Maui fires, underway since Tuesday, August 8, were fanned by high speed wind gusts upwards of 60 mph as the islands were trapped between a high pressure system to the north and Hurricane Dora to the south.

The federal government made a major disaster declaration on Thursday, August 10, opening the door for government funding and assistance.

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