Maui Wildfire Losses Deepen, and Other News From the Week
We’re pleased to bring you “While You Were Out”—Verily's quick takes on the happenings of this week
Maui update confirms at least 114 victims in devastating wildfire
Last week, residents of Maui, Hawaii, saw one of the worst wildfires in American history. Much of historic Lahaina was destroyed—although some buildings, like Maria Lanakila Catholic Church, were spared from the flames. Since then, a staggering 114 victims have been confirmed dead due to the catastrophe, according to a recent update from the Maui Police Department on Friday. This ranks the wildfire as the one of the deadliest in U.S. history. Authorities have not yet revealed any of the identities of the newly discovered victims to the public. The Wall Street Journal reports fears that many of those killed are children; with school still out of session, some working parents left their kids at home, where they may have had little warning to escape.
The Maui Fire Department also reported that the remaining fires are contained within certain hot spots. Moreover, it is said that these fires are 90 percent contained.
Hawaii governor Josh Green gave an evening address on Friday: “Let me be clear. Lahaina belongs to its people and we are committed to rebuilding and restoring it the way they want.” This statement may have been made to quell fear concerning how Lahaina will be rebuilt. Some residents wonder if costly housing will be erected in order to accommodate outsiders.
The governor also said, “Lahaina will rise again. It will be a symbol of our resilience, our values, and our sacred bonds of Ohana. When it is rebuilt, it will be a living memorial to the loved ones we have lost.”
There’s ongoing discussion regarding the initial cause of these wildfires. Many news outlets were quick to blame "climate change"; however, the island’s dry, highly flammable, invasive grasses and propelling winds from Hurricane Dora are also factors to consider. —Hannah Rose Ward
Kansas newspaper raided by police, sparking civil rights outcry
The humble offices of the Marion County Record in Kansas were invaded by local cops this week, with reporters’ cell phones, computers, and hard drives being seized. A simultaneous storming was carried out at the home of the newspaper’s co-owner and editor, Eric Meyer.
CBS News reports it all started with a tip the Record received about a prominent local restaurant owner, Kari Newell, claiming she was driving without a license after a DUI incident. The journalists in tiny Marion, population 2,000, confirmed that was true, using public records. Ultimately, the paper decided not to publish the information, due to suspicion about the motives of the tipster. However, the paper did cover a later city council meeting, where Newell herself admitted to the illegal activity.
The official excuse police gave for the raid was an investigation into allegations of “identity theft.” The Kansas Bureau of Investigation also participated in the investigation.
First Amendment experts nationwide have condemned the raid as likely violating constitutional protections and other federal laws that shield journalists from government interference. “It's an abuse of power by the police and it's a serious dereliction of duty by the judge who signed off on it,” First Amendment attorney Ken White told NPR. Meyer himself commented in an interview with CBS News, "This is the type of stuff that, you know, that Vladimir Putin does, that Third World dictators do. This is Gestapo tactics from World War II."
The confiscated equipment has since been returned to the newsroom, and Meyer is contemplating suing the police department and its chief, Gideon Cody, whom the paper was also investigating for possible misconduct in his previous role in Kansas City, Missouri law enforcement. But it’s too late to seek redress for the Record’s other co-owner, Meyer’s mother, Joan: the 95-year-old died after the raid, a loss her son attributes to being “stressed beyond her limit.” —Margaret Brady
Southern California braces for Hurricane Hilary
Hurricane Hilary briefly reached Category 4 storm strength over the weekend, threatening Southern California with potential isolated tornadoes, catastrophic surf and rip currents, and intense flooding, according to the National Weather Service.
“We are currently closely monitoring Hurricane Hilary off the coast of Baja California,” said Courtney Carpenter, a NWS warning coordination meteorologist. “Later this weekend Sunday into Monday, we are expecting a rare and dangerous rainfall event with significant flash flooding, river flooding, mudslides, and debris flows as well as the potential for wind damage from strong tropical storm force winds.”
The National Weather Service typically launches a weather balloon twice a day across 90 locations in the U.S. They will now launch a special balloon every six hours to monitor Hurricane Hilary’s location and strength in order to create reliable forecasts. As of Saturday evening, the storm was packing Category 2 strength winds up to 110 miles per hour.
Officials in Santa Catalina Island, an island twenty three miles off the Southern California coast, issued an evacuation advisory for the tourist destination. Avalon, a major city in Santa Catalina, closed its bay to all incoming boaters.
The large amount of rain paired with intense wind levels could potentially cause mud and landslides, washing out roads in mountainous areas. The heaviest rainfall is expected to hit on Sunday.
Californians are stocking up on emergency supplies in an attempt to beat Hurricane Hilary’s arrival. “Preparations for flooding impacts should be completed as soon as possible, as heavy rainfall will begin well in advance of [the] center,” said the National Hurricane Center's Eastern Pacific office. — Hannah Cote
'Blind Side' football star says adoption story was a Hollywood lie
The 2009 movie, The Blind Side, which nabbed Sandra Bullock an Academy Award for Best Actress, told the heart-warming true story of Michael Oher, a homeless African American teen with football talent in Tennessee, who was taken in by the wealthy Tuohy family and wound up playing in the NFL.
But according to ESPN, Oher now says that the Tuohys never adopted him. Since he was legally an adult, they instead created a conservatorship agreement that allowed the family to profit from business deals involving his life story — profits that Oher says weren't shared with him. He's hired an attorney and filed a petition asking to end the arrangement.
"The lie of Michael's adoption is one upon which Co-Conservators Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy have enriched themselves... Michael Oher discovered this lie to his chagrin and embarrassment in February of 2023, when he learned that the Conservatorship to which he consented on the basis that doing so would make him a member of the Tuohy family, in fact provided him no familial relationship with the Tuohys," the document says.
Conservatorships have recently shown up in the news, most prominently in the case of Britney Spears' allegedly abusive conservatorship held by her father. They are typically meant to protect vulnerable adults who aren't able to make their own financial or healthcare decisions. Oher has previously spoken about how his portrayal in Blind Side as somewhat slow-witted was inaccurate and offensive.
For their part, the Tuohys say that Oher, who retired from the NFL in 2016, has been sending threatening messages asking for money. They've announced through an attorney they plan to request the termination of the conservatorship, but it's not clear where that leaves their family relationship, if any. Sean Tuohy insisted to the Daily Memphian, "We're going to love Michael at 37 just like we loved him at 16." It's a disheartening turn in a story that was perhaps too good to be true. —MB
Good News of the Week
Morocco’s national team makes World Cup history
It’s Morocco’s first time fielding a team at the women’s World Cup tournament, and the ladies are making a splash. They’ve knocked out heavy favorite Germany on the way to the 16 team round.
Perhaps the biggest story is star Nouhaila Benzina, who is the first woman to play in the World Cup while wearing a hijab. “The significance of this is HUGE for many #Muslim girls and women including myself,” equality in athletics activist Shaista Aziz said on X, the app formerly known as Twitter.
According to Al Jazeera, the Moroccans will next play France. Notoriously, last month, the French Football Federation banned the hijab for female soccer players, as part of the country’s ongoing commitment to cultural and legal secularism. International soccer association FIFA lifted the ban on the hijab in 2014.
We are excited to see Morocco’s Cinderella story at the World Cup continue! —MB
Watch of the Week
As many stay-at-home moms have discovered to their chagrin, a lack of childcare is not a slam-dunk excuse to get out of jury duty (which it should be). And their little “bosses” don’t offer any time off! One Utah mom just went viral after she shared a video of her experience bringing her triplets to the first stage of juror selection:
