MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed Tuesday the death of a Filipino citizen from the deadly wildfires that razed the coastal town of Lahaina in Maui, Hawaii.
The victim was one of the five fatalities recently identified by local authorities, the rest of whom are all US citizens.
The DFA earlier confirmed that 79-year-old Alfredo Galinato, a US citizen of Filipino descent, also perished from the blaze.
DFA Assistant Secretary Paul Raymund Cortes said official data showed the death toll has reached 114, majority of whom are yet to be identified.
“So, the chances na may mga kababayan tayo na naapektuhan ng Maui wildfire is very, very high dahil mataas iyong population ng ating Filipino community sa Maui but the probability na Philippine passport holder sila ay medyo mababa, nonetheless, kababayan pa po natin ang mga iyan, so nakikiramay po tayo (So, the chances that our fellow citizens are among the affected is very, very high because the population of the Filipino community there is also high but the probability that there are Philippine passport holders is low, nonetheless, they are still our fellow Filipino),” he said in a public briefing.
“We continue our prayers para sa mga kababayan natin na nasalanta ng tinatawag nilang fire hurricane (for our fellow citizens who were hit by what they describe as the fire hurricane),” he added.
Cortes said search and rescue operations are ongoing in Lahaina while the affected communities get temporary shelter, food, clothing and some financial assistance from the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu, he said, is also assisting Philippine passport holders rebuild their documentation, specifically birth certificates and passports. (PNA)