Total of 850 people are STILL missing in apocalyptic Maui wildfires, officials confirm

As many as 850 people are still missing and 114 are dead after apocalyptic wildfires in Maui, as president Joe Biden is scheduled to visit Hawaii on Monday.

Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen gave the update on a video posted to Facebook, which he used to send a message of hope about those still missing while reminding the public the death toll is expected to rise.

‘It is my sad duty to report that 114 individuals have been confirmed diseased,’ the mayor said on a video posted to Facebook. ‘There are currently 850 names on the list of missing persons.’

‘We are both saddened and relieved about these numbers,’ Bissen said.

‘There is positive news in this number, because when this process began the missing person list contained over 2,000 names.’

Bissen pointed out the initial number of people initially first feared dead was more than 2,000 but decreased once cellphone communications were restored.

Recovery teams can be seen sifting through scorched debris throughout Lahaina 

The FBI, which is assisting with search efforts, combined various lists of missing people to arrive at the total number of missing, the mayor added. 

The mayor’s update comes as Biden is set to visit the devastated island following criticism that it took him too long to do so.

Biden’s trip follows a period of public silence where he was criticized for his ‘no comment’ while spending time at his Delaware beach house.

Biden will visit with those who lost homes and loved ones during the disaster and be briefed by public officials. The White house said he has continued to receive briefings over the weekend, after Biden issued a series of public statements on the disaster following his early stumbles.

He will be accompanied by first lady Jill Biden.

The wildfire that broke out August 8 in the town of Lahaina is now the deadliest in more than a century, and the fifth-deadliest on record for the U.S.