At least 67 people are dead from wildfires in Hawaii, according to the latest tally released today by Maui County authorities.

“Another 12 deaths have been confirmed by 13:00 (local time yesterday Friday, 02:00 Greek time on Saturday) as the fire front in Laheina remains active. This brings the death toll to 67,” Maui County said in a statement.

Earlier, the governor of the American state Josh Green had told the CNN network that 59 deaths have been confirmed. “Without a doubt, the victims will be more. We don’t know exactly how much it will be in the end,” he stressed.

The images from the popular tourist resort of Laheina are heartbreaking. Rescue crews are combing the wider area, where about a thousand buildings have been destroyed, pulling charred bodies from the rubble.

The island of Maui has warning sirens for natural disasters and other threats, which according to witnesses did not sound when the fire advanced, Reuters news agency notes.

Maui Fire Chief Bradford Ventura said at a press conference Thursday that the rapid spread of the fire and the telecommunications blackout made it “almost impossible” to coordinate the authorities to evacuate the area in time.

On Friday, Mayor Richard Bissen told NBC’s “Today” show that he could not confirm reports that sirens did not sound, noting that the flames spread quickly.

The seaside resort of Lahaina is located next to two hills, which means that evacuating it is not particularly easy, since there are only two exits, Andrew Rubach pointed out. “It’s a nightmare scenario,” admitted the former professor of urban planning at the University of Hawaii, analyzing the data: “A fire that spreads rapidly in a densely populated area, where there are problems with telecommunications and not many good options in terms of evacuation.”

A large part of the western side of the island remains without water and electricity. Volunteers yesterday formed human chains at the port of Maalaia, where boats were carrying baby food, nappies, clothes, fuel and other essentials. In places where mooring boats was impossible, jet skis were even deployed to deliver supplies.