President guillermo lasso. Mr lasso vowed that this crime will not go unpunished. He called for an an urgent meeting of his top officials to address the killing. The countrys attorney general� s office said on social media that the suspect in the attack had died from injuries sustained in a shootout with police. Ecuador� s election is scheduled to take place on august 20th. Well have more on this story as it develops. Wildfires are raging across the us state of hawaii. Officials there say that at least six people have died and many are injured, with some in a critical condition. These are the scenes out of maui and the big island. The Historic Town of lahaina was one of the hardest hit, with reports that its now mostly reduced to ash. Crews there and across the islands are engaged in Search And Rescue, with evacuations underway for more than 13 thousand people. But as residents try to escape, some are finding that many of the major roads are blocked and too dangerous to use. Lieutenant governor sylvia luke, whos serving as Acting Governor issued an emergency proclamation, saying officials are working day and night to contain the fires. Wed never anticipated in this state that a hurricane which did not make impact on our islands would cause this type of wildfires, wildfires that wiped out communities, wildfires that wiped out businesses, wildfires that destroyed homes. We are learning and gathering information more and more and we just feel so sad and just great sympathy and prayers out to the people of maui. Intense winds from Hurricane Dora south of hawaii are helping the fires spread quickly. Crews are tackling wildfires across multiple sites, but the winds have grounded firefighting helicopters. The Us Coast Guard says it rescued 12 people who jumped into the ocean to escape the fast moving flames. Thousands are facing Power Outages and Mobile Phone Service is down across maui. Meanwhile, us President Biden has ordered all available federal assets in hawaii to help with the response including providing black hawk helicopters to fight fires on the big island. The Department Of Transportation is working to evacuate tourists from maui by air, and the Department Of The Interior and Department Of Agriculture are ready to assist in post Fire Recovery efforts. The president also urged all residents to follow evacuation orders. A short time ago i spoke with adam weintraub, a spokesperson for hawaiis Emergency Management agency in honoloulou. Adam, thank you so much for taking the time during what must be a very stressful situation. Just to begin with, if you could bring us up to date with what people are seeing on the ground. From what we have understood from our contacts on maui and on the big island, we have confirmed six fatalities as a result of the wildfires, as well as about a0 injuries, some of whom were airlifted to hospitals in honolulu, others whom were treated on maui at the hospitals there. It looks like there is widespread damage. The fire risk continues because we do continue to have high winds and low humidity here, and the fire control activities are still under way. The state governor sylvia luke said in a briefing, we have shelters that are overrun, we have resources being taxed, we are doing whatever we can. How stretched are authorities right now . What do they need . At the moment we know that there are more than 2100 people in five shelters on maui overnight. There were about 2000 visitors who arrived at the airport yesterday. We anticipate that in order to free up space to accommodate the folks who live in the community that have experienced fire damage, we will need to evacuate about 4000 people from maui. This morning, our office, working with the 0ahu Department of Emergency Management, the state Department Of Transportation and the American Red Cross began making arrangements to set up a travel Assistance Centre which will be at the Honolulu Convention center and we expect that will be a Clearing House where folks who either work in hotels and have to evacuate, arrived on maui and were unable to get to their hotels, or who may live in areas they are unable to return to until they have been secured, to make sure that the fire is fully out, and that we have completed our Search And Rescue operation, that they can be placed either in hotels on other islands, in temporary shelters or we can assist them to return to other destinations. Our partners in the airline have added Additional Service and made some accommodations to bring in extra crews so that they can assist with that effort. It must be a terrifying situation. Youve mentioned some of those high winds which have been further fanning the flames. I know that in some places power has been knocked out. You are there in honolulu. I mean, are people able to get to you, who need to evacuate . How difficult is it actually evacuating people, and will people be able to get on time . Well, fortunately here on oahu, we had scattered effects. There were Power Outages, there were traffic disruptions. The neighbour islands, including maui, have got a more limited Transportation System and there were significant obstacles to accessing some of the areas that needed help. The weather did not help with that. It is only this morning that we have been able to confirm that the firefighters in maui have been able to get aerial support. It was too windy yesterday to put the helicopters in the air to do aerial water drops. So, i know there was a lot of confusion, a lot of panic as people try to identify what was going on, and a lot of First Responders were stretched very thin yesterday on maui. Were still trying to assess a full picture of what happened because some of the communications on maui also went down. Were working with our federal partners to bring in additional resources, both for communications and with boots on the ground to help bring that situation under control. Of course, the fires are still burning. What do you anticipate happening in the coming days . What are you preparing for . Fortunately, our partners at the National Weather service tell us that we should see the high winds start to reduce as we get into tonight and overnight we should return to a more normal trade wind pattern. Unfortunately we are not seeing a lot of evidence of more rain showers in the forecast. The low pressure System Associated with Hurricane Dora drove up our normal trade winds which are usually in the 10 20 miles an hour range, up to 30 a0 miles an hour, and some areas recorded gusts of as much as 80 miles an hour and that combined with the very dry fuels from the dry season here in hawaii, created a tinderbox and it did not take much to spark these wildfires. We have seen these kind of wildfires in california, weve seen them in the west coast become ever more present. Is that something that hawaii is now banking on having to face more wildfires like this in the future . We know that there is research that suggests that when you put Additional Energy into the climate system, it means your High Energy Events become more powerful, it means dries are dryer, that storms are wetter. We are concerned that we may see some changes in the storm tracks that we have typically experienced here. Were not sure if this is a normal seasonal variation or if this is part of a larger pattern, but clearly the extremes of climate are being felt here in the pacific. Adam weintraub from the hawaiian Emergency Management agency, thanks for taking the time to be with us. Thank you. Leaders representing eight countries in South America are wrapping up a two day environmental summit in the brazilian city of belaine to prevent the amazon from reaching a Point Of No Return. Brazils president Luiz Inacio Lula da silva says that countries sharing the Amazon Rainforest will ensure that developed nations fulfill their financial pledges to combat Climate Change. Brazil which houses 60 of the rainforest, has called for Ending Deforestation by 2030. On tuesday, the leaders signed a declaration agreeing to Work Together to fight illegal logging, mining and organised crime. But there was no concrete date set to end deforestation as brazils president had advocated for. Since Lula Da Silva took office at the beginning of the year, deforestation of the amazon dropped considerably, but thousands of Square Kilometres continue to be lost every year. The bbc� s South America correspondent katy watson, has been following the conference from belem. The Amazon Summit is over here and for president lula, it has been a big success. He wanted to put South America on the map. Especially here in the amazon. He wanted to come up with a Regional Response in response to the issues around Climate Change. He talked about the fact that in this summit, the fact that in this summit, the am azone spoke for the amazon. Now, signing of the Belem Declaration which happened after that was signed by all eight countries that share a slice of the amazon. They committed to working together as a region, and that was all really positive. But many people feel that it fell short of a consensus, like Ending Deforestation by 2030. Thats been a commitment by lu will lula in brazil. And the intention was to get all of the countries to agree. But instead, they said that they all were committed to combatting deforestation, but no Firm Commitment about ending it in its entirety. So some people might feel disappointed. But i think, throughout this conference, throughout this summit, whats been important has been marrying up the Environmental Protection with social inclusion, and thats something that lula talked about. He said its not enough just to protect the canopy of the forest. Whats important is also protecting the people who live below it. Because unless those people and their futures are assured, then the future of the amazon will be much harder to be able to achieve Environmental Protection for the forest itself. But certainly, it has been a big deal hosting a summit here in the amazon. And in two years� time, delegates and politicians will be back to host cop30. A shortwhile ago, i spoke with co director of the Amazon Program at stand earth, Alicia Guzman to discuss Summit Wrapping Up in brazil. Thank you so much for taking the time to be with us. Now, the time to be with us. Now, the aim of this summit was to nail down goals, to avoid a Point Of No Return for the Amazon Rainforest. Do you think that was achieved . That was achieved . Yes. I think that was achieved . Yes. I think that the tipping that was achieved . Yes. I think that the Tipping Point, that was achieved . Yes. I think that the Tipping Point, or that the Tipping Point, or Point Of No Return it� s a very scientific concept. And the fact that all movements were talking about it and the president s were approaching it as the main problem we� re having here in the amazonia, and that it is in the background. And in some of the points of the final declaration, just shows that we have been achieving our goal at the initiative of amazonia for 2025. ,. , , 2025. There was no commitment for zero deforestation. 2025. There was no commitment for zero deforestation. What 2025. There was no commitment for zero deforestation. What do i for zero deforestation. What do you make of that . I for zero deforestation. What do you make of that . You make of that . I think that it is a very you make of that . I think that it is a very complex you make of that . I think that it is a very complex region it is a very complex region right now. We have a government de facto as well as in venezuela. There� s a scandal in colombia. Bolivia it has also had various issues. So at the moment, it is a very volatile region. Lulajust moment, it is a very volatile region. Lula just had problems with the ministry of indigenous peoples, and the Ministry Of Environment due to oil exploration. So i think that what was achieved it shows very much what could have been achieved in this context and more. I think it is very positive, but there are some outcomes that weren� t as we expected. And i think that at the end of the day, taking into account all of these different problems and dynamics, it was very positive. 50 problems and dynamics, it was very positive very positive. So we saw eight nations instead very positive. So we saw eight nations instead come very positive. So we saw eight nations instead come up very positive. So we saw eight nations instead come up with | nations instead come up with personal targets for their countries. Is there anything to enforce those targets, though . Yeah, one of the problems we� re seeing. And thank you for the question, because i think that this is the resuscitation of the organization of the trading of the amazon basin, acto in english. This has been an organization which has been neglected by the governments and the international communities. So pretty much, the final declaration focuses on the role of 0ptab, so unless the government has a way to measure them on specific Target Thatis Measure them on specific target that is they hit. All of the 113 points that are in the final declaration how are we going to measure ourselves. And i think that one thing that� s very important is that Everything Else beyond the states it� s in the declaration. But not for example their role in oil concessions, mining concessions. How their budgets should be linked to the different working areas that were established. So, unless there is notjust a target, but also that political will to make the acto and the different organs of these new organizations, because it won� t be the same organization that� s been working for these decades. 0k, been working for these decades. Ok, you know, there is this argument as well that it is not just about the eight countries. That more developed wealthier nations essentially should be putting more money on the table to help these countries. More Climate Finance. What do you think of that . Think of that . Well, most of the climate think of that . Well, most of the Climate Finance think of that . Well, most of the Climate Finance comes l think of that . Well, most of| the Climate Finance comes as loans to the global south. We are paying the bill for Climate Change by undertaking a lot of actions and repaying them with loans. So the global north has to definitely assume their responsibility of creating also and cancelling and promoting this context. We� re in the hottest summer ever and down here is still smoother because of the amazon. But once the amazon reaches a Tipping Point of the system, there are 16 other points, Tipping Points that can happen in cascade around the planet. So it� s an imperative right now. Around the planet. So its an imperative right now. Brazils president imperative right now. Brazils president lula imperative right now. Brazils president lula has imperative right now. Brazils president lula has said imperative right now. Brazils president lula has said in imperative right now. Brazils president lula has said in his| president lula has said in his opening speech at the summit, the action has never been so urgent. If countries cannot protect the amazon, if they fail to do so ultimately, what will that mean for the world . 3, world . Basically, without the amazon, there world . Basically, without the amazon, there are world . Basically, without the amazon, there are now world . Basically, without thej amazon, there are now many studies that show that without the amazon, the planet is not feasible. So it� s notjust the responsibility of the eight countries. Many banks are fueling oil expansion, mining expansion, Agro Industry in the amazon and the destruction of the amazon. So it� s notjust giving the money. It� s legislating in their own countries in the global north to