fell on a power line in maui s so called upcountry. it s believed to be the first in a chain of events that led to the widespread devastation we saw last week. earlier, i spoke to washington post reporter brianna sacks, who has been reporting on investigation into the fires. she found data and video evidence indicating elctrical faults in the island s power grid likely ignited the most devastating wildfires on maui. i found some security footage that took place at 10.47pm monday night in upcountry, which captured this bright flash which we now believe is what s called an arc flash, and that s what happens when the electrical grid faults meaning a line can come in contact with a tree, vegetation, another line falls to the ground. and the woman narrating that video said, i think a tree fell on a line, the power goes out, then fire sparks right in that same location. and i overlaid that with some
residents are trying to pin down what sparked this wildfire. joining me is brianna sacks, disaster and extreme weather reporter for the washington post. she was recently on the ground reporting in hawaii. thanks for being here. i found your reporting to be so illuminating in terms of what s going on here. this video, it s riveting and very disconcerting. can you tell me a bit more about the expectation, that these fires were caused by these powerlines? is that the working thesis at this point? yes. that became apparent early on. residents say power lines have caused quite a few fires on the island over the years and they don t deploy a public powered safety shut off program and there were reports from videos and residents themselves of powerlines swinging and sparking in the wind. so it s definitely the overall
the reporting you have been doing, brianna sacks. it has been essential, and so illuminating. thank you for your time. we appreciate it. that is our show for the evening. now it is time for the last word with lawrence o donnell. good evening, lawrence. ence good evening alex. we have andrew weissmann joining us with two georgia experts, gwen keyes fleming and amy lee copeland. there is so much to cover in defendant trump news that just keeps coming, but apparently we are not going to get that big moment on monday, where we were supposed to hear the trump defense for the first time. unfortunately. listen, lawrence, my monday is free and now apparently my april of the year 2026 is booked. don t be surprised if it happens before that, alex. okay, i won t be. thank you, alex. have a good show. thank you.
why 72 hours after this fire it s one of the biggest ports in the world, why there wasn t more supplies coming in, why it took so long to get federal and state resources. it s definitely more bustling now than it was a week ago, but people are still struggling for information. well thank you so much for the reporting you have been doing, brianna sacks. it has been essential, and so illuminating. thank you for your time. we appreciate it. that is our show for the evening. now it is time for the last word with lawrence o donnell. good evening, lawrence. las we have andrew waste men joining us with two georgia experts, gwen keyes fleming and amy lee copeland. there is so much to cover in defendant trump news that just keeps coming, but apparently we are not going to get that big moment on monday, where we were supposed to hear the trump defense for the first time.