Oprah film crew turned away from Lahaina shelter - as Jason Momoa blasts tourists

Oprah's film crew was turned away from a Lahaina wildfire shelter today 'out of respect for the survivors seeking safety' while another celebrity that lives on the island urged tourists not to visit Maui on social media

Oprah Winfrey's camera crew was denied entry at a Lahaina shelter for wildfire refugees 'out of respect to those seeking safety' today.

The TV star had attempted to bring a CBS crew inside a facility where survivors continue to struggle in the aftermath of the devastating fires that tore through Lahaina - which was denied, while she was allowed inside

The denial comes days after Oprah was filmed inside a shelter handing out supplies to survivors of the deadly fires that claimed 93 lives.

In a statement, the County of Maui said: "Out of respect for those who have come to seek safety and shelter at emergency shelters, our policy remains that no media are given access. "We welcome Oprah to continue to uplift our community’s spirit and give her aloha to victims of the tragic disaster and appreciate her understanding of our policy of no camera crews or reporters in our emergency shelters. Mahalo."

"Oprah was able to visit our shelter and we thank her for instructing media journalists and camera crews to remain outside," the county wrote in an update about Oprah trying to enter the shelter. "We welcome Oprah to continue to uplift our community’s spirit and give her aloha to victims of the tragic disaster."

"Her visit inside of the shelter today was truly heartwarming and we appreciate her understanding of our policy of having no camera crews or reporters accompanying dignitaries and celebrities in our emergency shelters," the statement concluded.

Meanwhile, Jason Momoa has urged tourists not to visit Maui in the aftermath of the wildfires that have devastated areas on the island, as residents look to "heal, grieve and restore." The actor - who was born on the neighboring island of O'ahu - has been sharing information and resources about the wildfires with his followers on Instagram this week.

The native Hawaiian and Aquaman actor shared a video in which he said that the community "needs time to heal, grieve and restore".

"That means the less visitors on the island taking up critical resources that have become extremely limited the better," he said.

He also shared resources about donating to the affected communities, including several posts created by the nonprofit organization 'Āina Momona, which focuses on environmental health and sustainability.

Jason took to the platform on Friday to share a post by the organization which urged people not to visit Maui for a vacation. It includes a slideshow of information and an accompanying caption that expresses gratitude for the support.

Slides in the recent post by the organization read: "Do not travel to Maui. If you were planning on traveling to Maui shortly, cancel your trip. The devastation from the wildfires will have a lasting island-wide impact on Maui's resources."

Oprah and Momoa are among at least a dozen celebrities that own expensive properties on the island, which has long battled the effects of outsiders on the island.

Lahaina residents said they found comfort and hope in community solidarity. But for many, the shock of the loss was only intensifying. "This is sinking in," said Mark Holland, a lifelong Lahaina resident who walked amid the ruins of its commercial and social hub for the first time after the fire. "The things that I saw I cannot describe," he said through tears.

The wildfire that laid waste to wooden homes and historic streets in mere hours last week has magnified concerns about a chronic housing shortage. Maui County estimates more than 80% of the more than 2,700 structures in hard-hit Lahaina were damaged or destroyed, and that some 4,500 residents are newly in need of shelter.

Concerns are multiplying that any homes rebuilt there will target affluent outsiders seeking a tropical haven. That would turbo-charge what is already one of Hawaii's gravest and biggest challenges: the exodus and displacement of Native Hawaiian and local-born residents who can no longer afford to live in their homeland.

Lahaina was a major historic district where Hawaii's queens and kings once resided. Lahaina is a "place where the past is present," David Aiona Chang, a professor, and Native Hawaiian historian at the University of Minnesota, told the Washington Post.

"Native Hawaiians, we’re very emphatic that we’re not giving up on that — our culture is still alive, our language is still alive — and that makes Lahaina very important to us," he continued.

Seeking to help the displaced, the West Hawai*i Realtors Association has curated a housing inventory catalog online - encompassing the entire state - in collaboration with other retail associations. The newly launched website details all available housing options in real-time and provides a platform for those willing to offer up a second home, vacation rental, or additional space for a displaced Maui resident.

Jeff Bezos is among those who own property in the state - his 14-acre estate on La Perouse Bay went for an estimated $78 million. His estate is about 20 miles south of the fires in Maui. Mr. Bezos’s partner, Lauren Sánchez, posted on Threads, a new messaging app linked to Instagram, that the wildfires were “beyond heartbreaking.” She wrote that “Jeff and I have been on the phone with residents and officials, and will be making donations to help.”

Mick Fleetwood, the drummer for the band Fleetwood Mac, also posted that the restaurant he owns in Maui has completely burned down in the fires. “Maui and the Lahaina community have been my home for several decades,” he wrote. “This is a devastating moment for Maui, and many are suffering unimaginable loss.”

The latest update on the death toll is at 93 individuals, with hundreds more still unaccounted for.

With communications slowly going back up, family members are turning to social media to try and locate each other to check in. Governor Green said he expects the death toll to rise. While walking down Front Street, he told reporters that some victims were positively identified Saturday.

"I had tears this morning," Green said, adding that he was afraid of what he would see at the disaster site. Operations were focusing on "the loss of life," he added.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it has been spray-painting cars and buildings on Front Street with an "X" to indicate they had received an initial check, but that there could still be human remains inside. When crews complete another pass-through, if they find remains, they will add the letters "HR."

Front Street is a terrible loss for locals, as Kaniela Ing, a seventh-generation Kānaka Maoli (Indigenous Hawaiian), told NBC News: "If you start from one end of Front Street and walk to the other end, it’s like a physical timeline of the history of the Hawaiian Kingdom. You can see the flow in the buildings stemming back 150 or more years.

"It’s remarkable and just the thought that that history may have been lost in this fire or any bit of that history is heartbreaking."