Fact checking a bizarre claim that government ‘direct energy weapons’ caused the Maui fires

Five-year-old images are being shared in social media posts as proof that the government is using “direct energy weapons,” such as lasers, to intentionally start the deadly fires that have recently ravaged Hawaii.

“Pay attention!!!!!!! Not wildfires,” read sticker text on a video shared Aug. 11 on Instagram. The video narrator said the Hawaii fires were caused by a “direct energy weapon assault.”

Hawaii officials said Aug. 10 that they don’t yet know what caused the wildfires that have swept across the island of Maui and killed more than 50 people.

Dry conditions, combined with low humidity and high winds, set the stage for the fires to spread, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, commander general of the Hawaii Army National Guard, said at an Aug. 9 news briefing.