Death toll in Maui from fires, already highest in 100 years, continues to climb

At least 114 people have died in the Maui wildfires, and the toll is expected to rise significantly as crews continue the grim task of searching for human remains.

The Maui disaster is now considered the worst in the U.S. over the past 100 years, surpassing the devastating fires in California of a few years ago.

About 25% of the island's fire zone has been searched, Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said Monday. Additional searchers and cadaver dogs have been brought in to assist in more neighborhoods. Names of the deceased will be released soon, officials said.

How the Maui wildfire compares with other fire disasters:

Maui wildfire is deadliest in 100 years

Fires were more deadly in the 1800s and early 1900s before firefighting methods were improved. The 1871 Peshtigo Fire in Wisconsin is considered the worst in U.S. history, with a death toll of 1,152.

After an unusually dry summer, a combination of sources, including sparks from a passing train, campfires and workers clearing land, are believed to have started small fires that were whipped up by winds into a firestorm.

Other wildfires through history have been tragically deadly.

Worst wildfires in US history

The number of lives lost on Maui becomes even more disturbing when its size is taken into account. An estimated 2,170 acres have burned in the Lahaina area, much less than the California Camp Fire in 2018, when 150,000 acres burned.

That translates to a higher death toll in a dramatically smaller space.

Wildfire fatalities per 1,000 acres burned

CONTRIBUTING Jim Sergent, USA TODAY; Rebecca Loroff, Green Bay Press-Gazette

SOURCE USA TODAY Network reporting and research; Associated Press