Some conspiracy theories claim that a laser beam was used to orchestrate the deadly wildfires in Hawaii.

The misleading posts generally suggest that “elites” or government agencies set the fires on purpose.

Alternative viewpoints are censored, according to many popular theories, despite millions of views.

Even if there are specific rumours circulating about Maui, they follow a general pattern frequently seen after extreme weather events and natural disasters – politically motivated activists trying to minimize the effects of climate change. Videos and images have been viewed by millions of people claiming the wildfires were caused by a “directed energy weapon”, a “laser beam” or an explosion, not by nature.

According to a video viewed 10 million times, a large explosion occurred just before the Maui fires. Some trees stand still on Maui while houses and vehicles are burned, with people claiming that the fires were deliberately started or that their real causes are being hidden.

In a video posted by X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, everything except the trees is burnt.

X’s Community Notes feature, where users add context and facts around viral posts, challenges that post – which has been viewed more than 24 million times.v