November 27, 2024

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(Lotte Group)

South Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate Lotte Group said Thursday it made donations worth $100,000 in a bid to help Hawaii cope with the aftereffects of devastating wildfires that recently demolished the island of Maui.

Lotte said the donation will be sent to Friends of Hawaii Charities -- a public charity organization founded in 1998 with an aim to support Hawaiian women, children, elderly and community groups with essential life needs. Specifically, the donation will be used to repair the damage caused by the recent fire and provide emergency support for the victims, the group said.

Lotte is the first Korean business to join relief efforts for wildfire victims in Hawaii.

Its donation follows the Korean government's commitment made earlier in the week to send $2 million worth of humanitarian aid to Hawaii.

The donations come as one of the deadliest wildfires the US has experienced in a century broke out on the island of Maui on Aug. 8, resulting in casualties of more than 100 people and the destruction of some 2,200 buildings.

By Lee Yoon-seo (yoonseo.3348@heraldcorp.com)