Maui County officials have taken legal action against major cellular carriers, alleging negligence in failing to inform emergency responders about widespread cellphone outages during last summer's deadly Maui wildfires. The lawsuit claims that if emergency responders had been aware of the outages, alternative methods would have been used to warn the public about the disaster.
According to the lawsuit, alerts sent by the county to cellphones warning residents to evacuate were never received due to the cellphone outages. Additionally, Maui officials failed to activate sirens that could have alerted the entire population about the approaching flames, raising questions about the effectiveness of the emergency warning system.
The lawsuit, filed in state court against Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile USA, Spectrum Mobile, and AT&T, accuses the cellular carriers of failing to properly inform Maui police of the service outages. While T-Mobile defended its actions, stating that it broadcasted wireless emergency alerts and promptly notified authorities, other carriers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Following the devastating wildfires that claimed 101 lives in Lahaina, Maui County is facing multiple lawsuits over its emergency response. The county is also suing the Hawaiian Electric Company for allegedly failing to shut off power despite hazardous weather conditions.
The lawsuit by Maui County contends that the cell carriers' conduct substantially contributed to the damages against the county during the wildfires. It highlights that despite sending multiple alert messages to cellphones, all 21 cell towers serving West Maui experienced total failure during the crisis.
The county claims that the cell carriers have not provided accurate reports on the extent of the cell service outages as required by law. Had the carriers disclosed the full extent of the outages, the county asserts that different disaster response methods would have been employed.
