Studies Tie Unrecognized Deaths And Health Problems To Maui Wildfire

Researchers found that the Maui wildfires left 1 in 5 people with lung damage and half with symptoms of depression. Suicide and overdose death rates also nearly doubled.

This story is by AP medical writer Mike Stobbe.

NEW YORK (AP) — The toll of wildfires is usually counted in acres burnt, property destroyed and lives lost to smoke and flames. But three new studies suggest the cost to human health from the Maui and Los Angeles wildfires was substantially higher.

Two of the papers published Wednesday explore what happened after the Maui blaze that devastated the historic town of Lahaina in August 2023 — one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires in a century. A third looks at the Los Angeles wildfires earlier this year.

The Maui fire was directly blamed for more than 100 deaths. But it als