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Hawaii wildfire victims spared from testifying after last-minute deal over $4B settlement

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Hawaii wildfire victims spared from testifying after last-minute deal over $4B settlement
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Hawaii wildfire victims spared from testifying after last-minute deal over $4B settlement

2025-01-30 09:11 Last Updated At:09:20

HONOLULU (AP) — Lawyers representing victims of a deadly Hawaii wildfire reached a last-minute deal averting a trial that was scheduled to begin Wednesday over how to split a $4 billion settlement.

The agreement means victims and survivors will not have to testify, reliving in court details of the massive inferno in Lahaina that killed more than 100 people, destroyed thousands of properties and caused an estimated $5.5 billion worth of damage.

Before the trial was scheduled to begin Wednesday morning, lawyers met in private with Judge Peter Cahill, who later announced that a deal had been reached. Lawyers, who reached the deal late Tuesday, are expected to file court documents detailing the agreement in a week.

Some victims had been ready to take the witness stand, while others submitted pre-recorded testimony, describing pain made all the more fresh by the recent destruction in Los Angeles.

“Some folks I’m sure will be disappointed, because in their minds this was their time to share their story,” Jacob Lowenthal, one of the attorneys representing individual plaintiffs, said Wednesday. “Other folks are going to be relieved because they don’t have to go in and testify.”

One of the individual plaintiffs is Kevin Baclig, whose wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law and brother-in-law were among the 102 people known to have died.

Baclig said in a declaration that if called to testify he would describe how for three agonizing days he searched for them — from hotel to hotel, shelter to shelter. “I clung to the fragile hope that maybe they had made it off the island, that they were safe,” he said.

A month and a half went by and the grim reality set in. He went to the Philippines to gather DNA samples from his wife’s close relatives there. The samples matched remains found in the fire. He eventually carried urns holding their remains back to the Philippines.

“The loss has left me in profound, unrelenting pain,” he said. “There are no words to describe the emptiness I feel or the weight I carry every day.”

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green announced the $4 billion settlement — agreed by the state, power utility Hawaiian Electric, large landowners and others — about a year after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century devastated Lahaina in 2023. At the time, he touted the speed of the deal to “avoid protracted and painful lawsuits.”

The trial was supposed to determine a percentage split between two groups of plaintiffs, including some who filed individual lawsuits after losing their family members, homes or businesses, and other victims covered by class-action lawsuits, including tourists who canceled trips to Maui because of the blaze.

Only a nominal portion of the settlement should go to tourists whose trips were delayed or canceled, Lowenthal said previously.

“The categories of losses that the class is claiming are just grossly insignificant compared to our losses,” he said.

Attorneys for the class have not responded to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment on the averted trial.

In their trial brief, they challenged the idea that everyone who has a claim worth suing over had already done so. Many people held off hiring attorneys, the brief said, because of the fire's disruption to life, "distrust in heavy attorney advertising, and a desire to see how the process plays out first.”

Separately, the state Supreme Court is considering whether insurers can sue the defendants for reimbursement for the $2 billion-plus they have paid out in fire claims, or whether their share must come from the $4 billion settlement. Oral arguments in that case are scheduled for Feb. 6.

“That is the last big piece that needs to be decided before the global settlement can move forward,” Lowenthal said.

FILE - Nora Bulosan, right, and Hannah Tomas, Lahaina, Hawaii residents who survived the fire that devastated the town, comfort each other as they gather in hopes to get access to their home in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

FILE - Nora Bulosan, right, and Hannah Tomas, Lahaina, Hawaii residents who survived the fire that devastated the town, comfort each other as they gather in hopes to get access to their home in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

FILE - Wildfire wreckage is shown in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

FILE - Wildfire wreckage is shown in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Russia and the U.S. agreed Tuesday to start working towards ending the war in Ukraine and improving their diplomatic and economic ties, America's top diplomat said after talks that reflected an extraordinary about-face in U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the two side agreed broadly to pursue three goals: to restore staffing at their respective embassies in Washington and Moscow, to create a high-level team to support Ukraine peace talks, and to explore closer relations and economic cooperation.

He stressed, however, that the talks — which were also attended by his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov — marked the beginning of a conversation, and more work needs to be done down the road.

No Ukrainian officials were present at the meeting, which came as the beleaguered country is slowly but steadily losing ground against more numerous Russian troops in a grinding war that began nearly three years ago.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country wouldn't accept any outcome from this week's talks since Kyiv wasn't taking part — and postponed his own trip scheduled for Wednesday.

European allies have also expressed concerns they are being sidelined.

Ties between Russia and the U.S. have fallen to their lowest level in decades during the war. Both embassies have been hit hard by expulsions of large numbers of diplomats over the course of several years, and the U.S., along with European nations, imposed a raft of sanctions on Russia. The allies have repeatedly expanded the measures to damage Moscow's economy.

“Should this conflict come to an acceptable end, the incredible opportunities that exist to partner with the Russians geopolitically on issues of common interest and frankly, economically on issues that hopefully will be good for the world and also improve our relations in the long term,” Rubio said.

His comments were further evidence of the remarkable U.S. reversal on Russia after years in which Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, led international efforts to isolate Moscow.

Tuesday's meeting was meant to pave the way for a summit between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. After the talks wrapped, Putin’s foreign affairs advisor, Yuri Ushakov, told Russia’s Channel One that no date has been set yet for that summit but that it was “unlikely” to take place next week.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Lavrov said that in his view, “the conversation was very useful.” He mentioned the same three goals as Rubio and said that Washington and Moscow agreed to appoint representatives to carry out “regular consultations” on Ukraine.

“We not only listened, but also heard each other," Lavrov. "And I have reason to believe that the American side has started to better understand our position, which we have once again outlined in detail, using specific examples, based on President Putin’s repeated speeches.”

The meeting marked the most extensive contact between the two countries since Moscow’s Feb. 24, 2022, invasion. Lavrov and then-U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken talked briefly on the sidelines of a G-20 meeting in India nearly two years ago, but tensions remained high.

The recent U.S. diplomatic blitz on the war has sent Ukraine and key allies scrambling to ensure a seat at the table amid concerns that Washington and Moscow could press ahead with a deal that won’t be favorable to them.

Kyiv's absence at Tuesday's talks has rankled many Ukrainians, and France called an emergency meeting of European Union countries and the U.K. on Monday to discuss the war. Kyiv’s participation in such talks was a bedrock of U.S. policy under Biden, whose administration also led international efforts to isolate Russia over the war.

Rubio said Tuesday that ending the conflict would require concessions from all sides and that Europe would be a part of talks.

In talking about sanctions against Russia, Rubio noted that the measures have come from the U.S.'s allies as well.

“The European Union is going to have to be at the table at some point because they have sanctions as well that have been imposed,” he said.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday said he spoke by phone to Trump and Zelenskyy following Monday's European meeting.

“We seek a strong and lasting peace in Ukraine,” Macron wrote on social media platform X. “To achieve this, Russia must end its aggression, and this must be accompanied by strong and credible security guarantees for the Ukrainians,” he said and vowed to “work on this together with all Europeans, Americans, and Ukrainians.”

Peskov on Tuesday said that Putin has repeatedly expressed readiness for peace talks, and noted that a durable settlement of the conflict in Ukraine would be impossible without “a comprehensive consideration of security issues” in Europe.

The meeting at the Diriyah Palace in the Saudi capital of Riyadh also highlights de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to be a major diplomatic player, burnishing a reputation severely tarnished by the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Saudi state media described the talks as happening at the prince’s direction. Like the neighboring United Arab Emirates, the prince has maintained close relations to Russia throughout its war on Ukraine, both through the OPEC+ oil cartel and diplomatically as well.

Saudi Arabia has also helped in prisoner negotiations and hosted Zelenskyy for an Arab League summit in 2023.

Zelenskyy postponed his own trip to Saudi Arabia scheduled for this week, citing the fact that officials from his country were not invited to the talks. He suggested he wanted to avoid his visit being linked to them. He said his visit was rescheduled for March 10.

Rubio was accompanied by U.S. national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy Steve Witkoff, while Lavrov sat next to Ushakov. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and national security adviser Musaed al Alban joined Rubio, Lavrov and others for the start of the meeting.

Meanwhile, Russia continued to pummel Ukraine with drones, according to Kyiv's military. The Ukrainian air force said Russian troops launched a barrage of 176 drones at Ukraine overnight, most of which were destroyed or disabled by jamming.

One Russian drone struck a residential building in Dolynska in the Kirovohrad region, wounding a mother and her two children and prompting an evacuation of 38 apartments, the regional administration reported. Four more residential buildings were damaged by drone debris in the Cherkasy region of Ukraine, according to local officials.

Litvinova reported from Tallinn, Estonia. Associated Press writers Baraa Anwer in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, sits next to U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, sits next to U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, third left, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, left, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, second right, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, third left, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, left, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, second right, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, sits next to Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, sits next to Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, sits next to U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, right, and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, sits next to U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, right, and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, second left, meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

CORRECTS THE IDENTITY OF PERSON ON LEFT - Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, right, walks with an unidentified member of his team across the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

CORRECTS THE IDENTITY OF PERSON ON LEFT - Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, right, walks with an unidentified member of his team across the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, right, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Monday Feb. 17, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, right, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Monday Feb. 17, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, speaks to journalists at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, speaks to journalists at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, speaks to journalists at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, speaks to journalists at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, right, and Maria Medvedeva, the deputy CEO for external communication for the fund, walk across the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, right, and Maria Medvedeva, the deputy CEO for external communication for the fund, walk across the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)

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