Hawaii wildfires: Oprah And The Rock Pledge Direct Payments To Victims In Maui

Dwyane The Rock Johnson and Oprah Winfrey have created a fund to make direct payments to people in Hawaii who have been affected by Maui wildfires.

The two celebrities kick started the fund raiser by donating $10 million and urged other celebrities and the public at large to make donations.

The People's Fund of Maui aims to make monthly payments of $1,200 (£950) to the thousands of victims of the fires that swept the island this month.

According to reports, the death toll resulting from the disaster currently stands at 115 but many remain missing three weeks on.

The money will go to adults whose homes were destroyed by the wildfires in Lahaina and Kula on Maui. It is available to homeowners and renters, but not to owners who do not live in the buildings that were ruined.

The fundraiser in charge of The people’s fund while speaking to the press stated Collaborating closely with an esteemed advisory board and support from the local community and respected elders, this new fund will serve as a bridge to provide cash directly to the families and individuals affected so that they can personally determine how best to use the funds for themselves.

Winfrey and The Rock in a video posted on Instagram, also aired their opinions. In the video winfrey stated People being able to have their own agency, being able to make decisions for themselves about what they need and what their family needs - that's our goal.

While the Rock in the same video added Even in the most difficult of times, the people of Maui come together, and we rise - that's what makes us stronger. We are beyond grateful to be working alongside esteemed community leaders of Maui to launch the People's Fund of Maui. These leaders are offering their guidance to ensure our fund can put money directly in the hands of those individuals most affected.

This Fundraiser comes after The Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) offered an initial payment of $700 for immediate needs to the victims but many noted that the money did little to help with long-term recovery. West Maui residents have said more that help is needed faster and that ad hoc networks of volunteers were doing more than federal and local agencies.

Many Native Hawaiians and other longtime residents have said they fear they may not be able to afford to rebuild their lives on an island that already had a housing shortage, before the wildfires burned down more than 2,000 structures and forced thousands of people into emergency shelters.

Some workers who keep Maui’s booming tourism industry running have also been priced out by wealthy buyers from the mainland, including billionaires like Peter Thiel, Jeff Bezos and Ms. Winfrey. She has lived in Maui part-time for more than 15 years and bought 870 acres of land in Kula for nearly $6.6 million earlier this year, according to the local news site Maui Now.

Winfrey has a lot of love for Maui and The Rock lived in Hawaii as a child and is partly of Samoan descent.

Also Read: Warner Bros. Didn't Want Henry Cavill To Return As Superman: Dwayne Johnson

Also Read: Ranking Of Dwayne The Rock Johnson Movies