Fires break out on Hawaii’s Maui island

At Lahaina, on the island of Maui in Hawaii, two large bushfires had broken out, spread quickly by the winds whipped up by Lane and forcing the evacuation of more than 100 homes, including a school serving as an evacuation centre.

The cause of the fires, which have scorched hundreds of acres, was not immediately known, according to Hawaii News Now. The broadcaster said a woman had been hospitalised with serious burns.

Little rain had poured on Maui on Sunday, the broadcaster said, but the winds were intense, creating problems for firefighters battling to contain the blaze.

Authorities were wishing the hurricane would pick up speed and douse the blazing area with some rain.

Until this week, parts of the state had been suffering through a prolonged dry period that had sparked several bushfires in a year filled with disasters for Hawaii.

It started with record floods in Kauai in April, then the eruption of the Kilauea volcano, which is still ongoing, that forced the evacuation of entire subdivisions on the Big Island.

Hurricane Lane is just the latest hit in a difficult year.