Fleetwood Mac star ‘heartbroken’ as Hawaii restaurant is destroyed by ‘shock’ wildfire

Fleetwood Mac star Mick Fleetwood has described the devastating wildfires in Hawaii as “catastrophic” after revealing his restaurant has been destroyed in the deadly blaze.

Wildfires began sweeping through the island of Maui on Tuesday night and have since caused mass devastation, including the destruction of the historic town of Lahaina, which has been mostly reduced to ash.

More than 90 people have perished in the fatal blaze, which is now the deadliest US wildfire in more than a century, and thousands have been forced to flee their homes.

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The Fleetwood Mac co-founder, 76, has lived in Hawaii for decades and was visiting family in LA when the fires broke out but flew back immediately to help, Sky News reports.

His home was untouched by the fire, but the musician revealed the popular restaurant he owns in the decimated town of Lahaina “has been lost”.

In a social media post on Wednesday, he shared an old picture of the sign for Fleetwood’s on Front St, captioning the post: “This is a devastating moment for MAUl and many are suffering unimaginable loss.

“Fleetwood’s on Front Street has been lost and while we are heartbroken our main priority is the safety of our dear staff and team members.

“On behalf of myself and my family, I share my heartfelt thoughts and prayers for the people of MAUI. We are committed to supporting the community and those affected by this disaster in the days, months, and years to come.”

The rock star has described the wildfires as “an incredible shock for everyone”.

He told Sky News: “These hills were ablaze and I wasn’t there… I was feeling helpless, and switches were going on and off as to what to do.”

Fleetwood’s on Front St opened in 2012 and had been set to celebrate its 11th anniversary this week but pictures of the destruction show it has been gutted by the wildfires.

Many of its staff and local customers have lost everything.

“It’s an incredible shock for everyone. The whole town of Lahaina is no more. That in itself is a statement that leads you immediately to the people who lived there,” Mick said.

He confirmed he was lucky not to have lost a loved one or his home in the fire, like many others have, adding: “It could have happened, but it didn’t happen… I’m really lucky. Now, what the hell can I do?”

Mick noted the most important thing right now is finding people, he said: “The immediacy is communicating and knowing who’s here and who’s safe.”

But he’s promised to continue speaking out about the wildfires to raise awareness about the tragic event.

“What I can do and I’m doing is being an advocate to say ‘pay attention to what is going on’… that’s actually way more helpful than going down and crying in Lahaina… that will happen, I’m sure, but not now,” he said.

With locals fearing the destroyed land will be snapped up by affluent land developers, Mick pledged he would be “waving a flag” against the site becoming “some form of playground with no reference to the dignity of that town”.

“To me, would be abhorrent,” he said.

Hawaii governor Josh Green warned: “The full extent of the destruction of Lahaina will shock you” in a news conference last week.

“It appears as if a bomb went off,” he said.

President Biden has approved a major disaster declaration for Hawaii in response to the wildfires and ordered “all available Federal assets on the Islands to help with the response”.

In a statement, he said: “Jill and I send our deepest condolences to the families of those who lost loved ones in the wildfires in Maui, and our prayers are with those who have seen their homes, businesses, and communities destroyed.

“We are grateful to the brave firefighters and first responders who continue to run toward danger, putting themselves in harm’s way to save lives.”

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk