In this special episode of If Walls Could Talk, W&C Group Publisher Jill Bloom speaks to Steve Slepcevic, CEO of Strategic Response Partners, on the horrific situation in the Hawaii wildfires. 

Slepcevic was one of the first responders that helped as the fires broke out. He explains what type of help was available and how the situation developed. 

“The response to this wildfire, based on results was one of the worst responses and was poorly executed. There are people that were going through Lahaina freely; there was no security checkpoints. Some people weren’t even aware of it,” he says. “There was an alert system that failed.”

As of August 22, 114 people have died as a result of the fires in Maui. The wildfires, fanned by strong winds, burned multiple buildings, forced evacuations and caused power outages in several communities.

How can people help? Well, there are search parties still in place. Community, national and global help/assistance will no doubt be needed at some level. The Hawaiian people are helping Hawaiian people. Many people coming from the mainland need to be respectful and follow the laws. Many utilities are down. Do not come in to help if you don’t have secured housing, Slepcevic says.