Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson have committed $10 million to offer direct payments to families on Maui who are unable to return to their homes due to the wildfires through a new fund on Thursday .
According to the fund's website, the People's Fund of Maui will provide $1,200 per month to adults who are unable to return to their primary houses due to the recent wildfires, including people who own and rent their properties. The organization will also seek donations to extend the length of time it can provide assistance.
"How can we assist?" In a video that was released, Dwayne claimed that he and Winfrey talked about how to focus their efforts in the midst of the blaze. You want to provide for people's greatest need, which is money. They expressed their gratitude for "everyone who called and said, 'What can I do for help?'" they received. Following that, Winfrey said, "This is what you can do."
The two were inspired by a similar fund established by Dolly Parton following the December 2016 wildfires in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, which killed 14 people and destroyed 2,400 structures
The Dollywood Foundation's president, Jeff Conyers, said he met with Winfrey's staff several times in recent weeks to convey the lessons they'd learned from administering the fund, which eventually provided $11 million to people who had lost their homes.
The People's Fund of Maui requires applicants to present a government ID and a power bill in their name for a lost or unusable residence, according to the fund's website.
Winfrey, who lives on Maui part-time, visited an emergency shelter in the days following the catastrophe and was concerned about getting assistance to locals effectively. The fires killed at least 115 individuals, with an unknown number still missing. The fire that ravaged the historic town of Lahaina on August 8 was the deadliest in the United States in more than a century.
Johnson and Winfrey expect that the fund will continue to make transfers to qualifying citizens for at least six months, but Winfrey says it will be up to the American people to choose how long the fund will continue to exist depending on their support and donations.