San Francisco, 16 August 2023 (dpa/MIA) - The number of dead from the devastating fire on the Hawaiian island of Maui has risen to 106, the county administration said late on Tuesday.

"We are heartsick that we've had such loss," Hawaii Governor Josh Green had said earlier, adding that just 27% of the devastated area had been searched.

Children were also among the dead, he said in response to a reporter's question, warning that the death toll could still rise significantly.

Volunteers continue to comb the burnt-out buildings with sniffer dogs. Only about a third of them have been inspected, the county said.

Only five of the bodies have been identified so far, police chief John Pelletier said. The authorities called on relatives of missing persons to provide DNA samples so that they could be matched.

A large team of forensic experts has arrived on the island to help with identification of the bodies, according to media reports.

US President Joe Biden earlier on Tuesday said he would soon be travelling to Hawaii following "the deadliest wildfire in a century."

"My wife Jill and I will be travelling to Hawaii as soon as possible," Biden said during a speech in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

In the meantime, Biden said, he wants to make sure that the people of Maui get the support they need. "Everything they need, they will get," the president promised.

Biden had pledged government disaster relief to the people of Hawaii two days after the fires broke out last week.

The US president also said he called Green on Tuesday to discuss Hawaii's recovery.

"I reassured the governor that Hawai'i will continue to have everything it needs from the federal government," Biden said in a social media post.

The wildfires broke out on August 8 in several places on Maui and the neighbouring island of Hawaii, which shares the same name as the US state.

The historic coastal town of Lahaina on Maui, which had 13,000 inhabitants before the disaster, was hit particularly hard.

Many streets there look like a war zone. The centre of Lahaina was completely destroyed, while emergency forces are still searching for missing persons.

Photo: EPA