MANILA — The number of Filipino fatalities in the wildfires in Hawaii is now three.
Philippine Consul General in Honolulu Emilio Fernandez on Friday identified the third Filipino who died as Salvador Coloma, 77, during a phone call with INQUIRER.net.
“According to the records of the Philippine Consulate in Honolulu, Coloma renewed his Philippine passport in 2022 and is, thus, confirmed to have been a Filipino citizen at the time of his death,” said the consul general.
He also said they contacted a relative of Coloma to convey the consulate’s profound condolences and offer the Philippine government’s assistance to the victim’s family.
The statement comes amid reports on the different numbers of alleged fatalities of Filipinos in the Maui tragedy.
“On the other information appearing online, [claiming] that they are Filipinos… they did not appear in our records, which means that they may be Filipinos, but they didn’t just apply for a passport or become dual citizens,” explained Fernandez.
“Maybe because they are already American, or they are already naturalized as US citizens. They may be Filipinos,” he added.
Fernandez stressed their records showed that only three fatalities have been confirmed to have Filipino blood.
The Filipinos who died following the wildfires were all elderly males. Their names are as follows:
* Alfredo Galinato, 79
* Rodolfo Rocutan, 76
* Salvador Coloma, 77
Meanwhile, Fernandez said the total number of deaths due to the catastrophe has reached 115. (Charie Abarca © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
